World News by Wild Rose

Fresh from walking down red carpets laid out by his Southeast Asian neighbours, Myanmar’s ex-military chief Min Aung Hlaing appears to have a new diplomatic feather in his cap: re-engagement with the United States. Washington slapped sanctions on Min Aung Hlaing just 10 days after his February 1, 2021 coup and the ensuing bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protesters. Waves of subsequent sanctions targeted military-linked companies and cronies. Yet since last month, two rounds of talks with US...

Washington, Oct. 20 (Jiji Press)--The leaders of the Quad, a collaborative framework among Japan, the United States, Australia and India, are expected to meet in Manila next month, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in an interview with Indian media on Tuesday. The summit will be held on the sidelines of meetings related to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Rubio told the me...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was meeting US special envoy Steve Witkoff on Tuesday in a ​bid to rescue relations that have sunk to new lows as Donald Trump has courted Moscow and Kyiv has complained about Washington withholding vital defences. FRANCE 24's Gulliver Cragg reports from Kharkiv.

Qatar says diplomatic efforts are ongoing to de-escalate regional tensions and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

With new talk of escalation, Islamabad is trying to revive negotiations without alienating Tehran, Riyadh or Washington.

The US secretary of state rejects accusations Ukrainians were dying because the US was withholding intelligence.

The ​U.S. ‌Secretary of ​State also said that India and U.S. are ‘very very close’ to finalising the trade deal

The US must balance Ukraine’s urgent requests for air-defense missiles with similar demands it’s receiving from other allies, and with the needs of its own military, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.

Tokyo, Oct. 20 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government on Tuesday criticized Russia for its failure to allow consular access to a Japanese journalist detained there within a period set in their bilateral diplomatic agreement. The failure is "extremely regrettable," Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said at a press conference. Russia announced the detention of a reporter for the Hokkaid...

Since 29 September, Brazil's US visa system allows only three interview cancellations or reschedulings per appointment. After that, the date is locked. The post US Visa Limits Brazilians to 3 Date Changes appeared first on The Rio Times.

Tehran summons German envoy after two men convicted of trying to kill leaders of Jewish groups, rejects any role.

In New York last month, US-China talks on artificial intelligence opened up a path of cooperation. This was affirmed by the Xi-Trump summit in Washington where both presidents agreed to establish a formal AI dialogue and hotline. With the next AI meeting set to happen in November, it is imperative that both countries further cooperation. The AI ecosystem is in flux. American tech companies are draining their coffers as they commit vast sums to chips, data centres and energy before the revenue...

Vladimir Putin called Algeria one of Russia's close friends and allies, speaking about dairy exports to a Moscow business forum, and Algiers answered warmly. The post Putin Calls Algeria a Close Ally on 15 Oct appeared first on The Rio Times.

PM Al Nahyan, who is also the UAE's Foreign Minister, will hold wide-ranging talks with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on October 20

President Duma Boko pledged to oppose Taiwan independence at talks with Xi Jinping, as Botswana and China upgraded ties and signed security and mining papers. The post Botswana Backs China on Taiwan on 13 Oct appeared first on The Rio Times.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday began a Gulf tour aimed at securing oil and diesel supplies in an effort to bring down prices, after a weekend of violent protests sparked by soaring living costs. Macron, just hours after slamming France's "unbridled" violence in an address late on Sunday, arrived in OPEC member Kuwait where he was welcomed by the emir, Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. FRANCE 24's International Affairs Editor Kethevane Gorjestani tells us more.

Europe's increasingly pragmatic engagement with Afghanistan's Taliban rulers is exposing a fundamental contradiction between diplomatic non-recognition and political necessity. In an investigation for The New York Times, Pakistan and Afghanistan bureau chief Elian Peltier reveals how European governments are quietly expanding negotiations with the Taliban over migrant deportations, diplomatic representation and economic assistance. “Even though on paper European governments do not recognise the Taliban administration, in practice they meet much more frequently than most of us know,” Peltier explains. 

Kinshasa wants a concrete and verifiable Rwandan response under the US-brokered Washington Accords, and Washington backs its call for a troop withdrawal. The post DR Congo Presses Rwanda Before Oct 19 Talks appeared first on The Rio Times.

Top US diplomat says Ukraine has requested access to military-grade version of Starlink for strikes deep inside Russia.

China has condemned Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi for sending a ritual offering to Tokyo’s war-linked Yasukuni Shrine, a move that threatens to cast an even longer shadow over the strained ties between Beijing and Tokyo. At the start of Yasukuni’s three-day autumn festival on Saturday, Takaichi sent a ritual tree-stand offering to the shrine in her capacity as prime minister, although she did not visit in person. Minoru Kiuchi, minister in charge of economic growth strategy, visited the...

Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and ECOWAS held their first formal talks in Dakar and agreed joint working groups to prepare a framework agreement. The post ECOWAS AES Talks Open in Dakar on 17 October appeared first on The Rio Times.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang has called for deeper cooperation with Uzbekistan in areas such as minerals and artificial intelligence as the Beijing vies with Washington for influence in Central Asia. Li told President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Saturday that Beijing was ready to strengthen strategic communication and expand mutually beneficial cooperation with Uzbekistan. He urged the two countries to step up cooperation in energy, minerals, finance and connectivity, and deepen collaboration in fields...

China strongly condemned what it called Japan’s “negative moves” concerning the Yasukuni Shrine, saying the actions were a provocation against the postwar international order, according to a Saturday statement from the Chinese Embassy in Japan.

The Yasukuni shrine controversy tests Japan-South Korea trust and the US-led security network, with 2.46 million war dead and 14 Class-A criminals enshrined. The post Why Japan’s Yasukuni Shrine Offering Angers Seoul appeared first on The Rio Times.

Donald Trump was apparently captivated by the “beautiful” roses in the garden of the Communist Party’s leadership compound when he visited Beijing in May. It was a relaxed moment between the US and Chinese leaders – otherwise locked in disputes ranging from trade to technology and Taiwan – that led to a new opportunity for gift diplomacy between the rival powers. Strolling around the former imperial garden at Zhongnanhai with Xi Jinping, Trump was so taken with a China rose variety in bloom that...

Bloomberg News Russia economy and government editor Anthony Halpin and White House correspondent Jeff Mason tell Bloomberg This Weekend that President Donald Trump’s waiver of new Russia sanctions could offer Moscow economic and diplomatic opportunities while adding pressure on Ukraine. (Source: Bloomberg)

Japan has long established itself as a pioneer of mediation in Southeast Asia. In 1990, for example, its officials helped broker talks between Cambodia’s warring factions, supplementing international efforts to end conflict in the country. Now, Tokyo is seeking to upgrade its diplomatic toolkit. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ International Peace Mediation Unit was set up in March, followed by the launch of the Parliamentary Association for Peace Mediation in May. Around the same time, the...

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Saturday sent a ritual offering to Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, regarded by Japan’s neighbours as a symbol of the country’s past militarism, at the start of its three-day autumn festival. Takaichi, known as a conservative who routinely visited the Shinto shrine before becoming prime minister a year ago, was unlikely to visit the shrine during the festival, a source close to her said, amid strained relations with China and relatively stable ties with South Korea. The...

As the US prepares to host the G20 summit in Miami in December, Americans’ views of participating countries vary, with China viewed more favourably than Russia, although both rank near the bottom, according to the latest Pew Research Centre report. Americans gave China an average rating of 37 out of 100, compared with 27 for Russia, Pew found in a report released on Friday. Canada, Australia, Japan and Italy received the warmest ratings, with average scores in the mid-to-high 60s. “Russia stands...