International news with relevance to Thai and regional readers
MOSCOW (AP) — While the U.S. warns that Russia could invade Ukraine any day, the drumbeat of war is all but unheard in Moscow, where pundits and ordinary people alike don’t expect President Vladimir Putin to launch an attack on its ex-Soviet neighbor. The Kremlin has cast the U.S. warnings of an imminent attack as
OTTAWA, Feb 14 (Reuters) – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday activated rarely used emergency powers in an effort to end protests that have shut some U.S. border crossings and paralyzed parts of the capital. Under the Emergencies Act, the government introduced measures intended to cut off protesters’ funding and took steps to reinforce
MOSCOW/KYIV, Feb 14 (Reuters) – Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Monday called on the country’s people to fly flags and sing the national anthem in unison on Feb. 16, a date that some Western media say Russian could invade. Ukrainian government officials stressed that Zelenskiy was not predicting an attack on Wednesday, but responding skeptically
BEIJING, Feb 14 (Reuters) – Beijing 2022 organisers welcome, protect and encourage diversity among athletes including any gay participants, Yang Yang, China’s first-ever Winter Olympics gold medallist, said on Monday. Homosexuality is legal in China, which until 2001 had classified it as a mental disorder, although many people still prefer not to come out to
Jan 14 (Reuters) – A burst of East-West diplomacy this week produced no breakthrough on the Ukraine crisis and tensions are arguably higher than before, with Ukraine suffering a massive cyberattack and Russia rehearsing troop movements. But the talks have clarified areas for possible negotiation, albeit on a far more limited set of topics than
WASHINGTON, Feb 12 (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin will speak on Saturday as Western nations warned that a war in Ukraine could ignite at any moment. Putin requested the telephone call between the leaders to take place on Monday, a White House official said, but Biden wanted to
PARIS (Reuters) – French President Emmanuel Macron refused a Kremlin request that he take a Russian COVID-19 test when he arrived to see President Vladimir Putin this week, to prevent Russia getting hold of Macron’s DNA, two sources in Macron’s entourage told Reuters. As a result, the visiting French head of state was kept at
SEOUL (Reuters) – The COVAX global COVID-19 vaccine-sharing programme has scaled back the number of doses allocated for North Korea, international aid organisations said, as the country has so far failed to arrange for any shipments. A website dashboard maintained by the United Nations children’s agency, UNICEF, shows the number of doses earmarked for North Korea now stands at
The Canadian trucker protest has temporarily sidelined a key auto industry transport route, adding stress to a North American car industry already pinched by low inventories and supply chain problems that have sent vehicle price soaring. Several leading automakers said Thursday they reduced production and cut labor shifts due to the blockade at the Ambassador
Wellington (AFP) – Police and anti-vaccine protesters clashed on the grounds of New Zealand’s parliament Thursday, with dozens arrested after demonstrators who have laid siege to the legislature for three days were ordered to move on. Activists chanted the Maori haka and yelled “hold the line” as they scuffled with a line of police moving to
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin told him that Moscow would not further escalate the Ukraine crisis. Macron also said it would take time to find a diplomatic solution to the rising tensions, which represent the biggest security crisis between Russia and the West since the
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) Former Pope Benedict on Tuesday acknowledged that errors occurred in handling sexual abuse cases when he was Archbishop of Munich and asked for forgiveness, as his lawyers argued he was not directly to blame. Victims lamented a lost opportunity for healing from a scandal that has rattled the worldwide Catholic Church. The Vatican issued a letter
