International news with relevance to Thai and regional readers
China will likely set one of the country’s lowest growth goals in decades at the annual National People’s Congress next week, experts told AFP, hit by long-running property woes, a sluggish global economy and geopolitical tensions. Thousands of party delegates from across China will converge on Beijing for a rubber stamp conclave set to confirm
The world’s ultra-richest saw their fortunes shrink by 10 percent in 2022, due to the war in Ukraine, a study said Wednesday, but the outlook for them this year is bright. The study, by London-based property consultants Knight Frank, examined the fortunes of what it calls ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs): people with a net worth of
At least 29 people were killed and another 85 injured after a collision between two trains caused a derailment near the Greek city of Larissa late Tuesday night, authorities said. A fire services spokesman confirmed that three carriages skipped the tracks just before midnight after the trains — one for freight and the other carrying
Hong Kong is scrapping its mask mandate from Wednesday, Chief Executive John Lee announced, ending the financial hub’s last major Covid curb as it seeks to emerge from the pandemic. The city was one of the last places in the world to require face coverings in virtually all public settings, with everyone over the age
Pokemon’s last major smartphone hit, “Pokemon Go”, had fans on the move hunting the lovable characters, but its next release will focus on a more relaxing activity: sleep. The Pokemon Company has revealed it will release “Pokemon Sleep” across most of the world in summer 2023, four years after it first announced plans for the game. “Turn your sleep
At least 59 people died, including 12 children, when a wooden sailing boat carrying migrants to Europe crashed against rocks near the southern Italian coast early on Sunday, authorities said. The vessel, which sailed from Turkey and was carrying people from Afghanistan, Iran and several other countries, sank in rough seas before dawn near Steccato di Cutro, a seaside resort on
G20 finance ministers failed Saturday to adopt a joint statement on the global economy at talks in India, after China sought to water down references to the Ukraine war. Russia, for its part, accused the United States, the European Union and the G7 nations of disrupting the ministers’ meeting by trying to force through a
Nearly 85,000 households and businesses were without power in the Los Angeles area on Saturday, as storms continued to pummel parts of California, bringing snow to higher elevations and dumping rain and hail in the flatlands. Interstate 5, the largest highway leading north out of the city, remained closed at the steep grade known as
China called Friday for urgent peace talks as it released its plan to end the war in Ukraine, but several Western powers rebuffed the proposals while warning against Beijing’s closening ties to Moscow. The United Nations expressed cautious optimism over the Chinese proposals, particularly over the document’s call to avoid using nuclear weapons. Russia reacted
Turkey has arrested 184 people suspected of responsibility for the collapse of buildings in this month’s earthquakes and investigations are widening, a minister said on Saturday, as anger simmers over what many see as corrupt building practices. Overnight, the death toll from the earthquakes, the most powerful of which struck at the dead of night
Diplomats and representatives from 36 countries and civil society joined a public solidarity event in Bangkok today (Friday), to mark the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The event, entitled “12 Moments for Ukraine”, was organised by the delegation of the European Union to Thailand, the Embassy of Sweden, in its capacity as President
BEIJING (AP) — China, a firm Russian ally, has called for a cease-fire between Ukraine and Moscow and the opening of peace talks as part of a 12-point proposal to end the conflict. The plan issued Friday morning by the Foreign Ministry also urges the end of Western sanctions imposed on Russia, measures to ensure
