WORLD

US President Donald Trump inked plans Thursday for sweeping "reciprocal tariffs" that could hit both allies and competitors, in a dramatic escalation of an international trade war that economists warn could fuel inflation at home.

Donald Trump's defence chief denied Thursday the US president was betraying Ukraine by opening talks with Russia's Vladimir Putin, as blindsided European powers insisted they and Kyiv must have a seat at the table.

Hamas said Thursday it was committed to honouring a truce with Israel that is facing its worst crisis since it took effect, and added that mediators were pushing for hostages to be released this weekend as planned.

Britain's economy surprisingly picked up at the end of last year, official data showed Thursday, relieving some pressure on the Labour government as the country faces up to US tariffs.

Western tour agencies entered North Korea for the first time on Thursday since the end of the pandemic, the companies said, voicing hopes the isolated country may soon reopen a border city to foreign visitors.

The Republican-controlled US Senate was expected Thursday to approve vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health secretary, despite major concerns from both political parties and many in the medical and scientific communities.

Young engineers deployed across the US government as part of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency have triggered alarm throughout Washington's security establishment.

South Korea's suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol will get another hearing next week before judges decide on whether to formally remove him from office over his martial law decree, the country's Constitutional Court said Thursday.

An AP reporter Wednesday was barred from attending White House events for the second straight day, as Donald Trump's administration sought to justify its actions against media that refuse to call the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America."

China last year began construction on projects with the greatest combined coal power capacity since 2015, jeopardising the country's goal to peak carbon emissions by 2030, according to a report published Thursday.

US President Donald Trump committed Wednesday to announcing "reciprocal tariffs" on other countries, saying he could sign an order for them within a day, a move that could open new fronts in a trade war.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan held talks Wednesday, signing a series of agreements to boost trade and defence ties between the Muslim-majority nations, including a joint venture to build drones.

Bangladesh's former government was behind systematic attacks and killings of protesters as it tried to hold onto power last year, the UN said Wednesday, warning the abuses could amount to "crimes against humanity".

Expat "mumfluencers" are taking to TikTok to sing the praises of life in Saudi Arabia and to extol the virtues of its new NEOM megacity, filming their idyllic lives spent picnicking by turquoise waters and shopping in gleaming malls.

With its flattering rhetoric, leniency in responding to US trade threats and alignment with Washington this week at a summit on artificial intelligence, the United Kingdom has signalled a willingness to take President Donald Trump's side over Europe.

The unfathomable scale of the world's largest religious festival in India overshadows many nations in size -- and for the economy, its impact is just as dramatic.

New US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth arrived for his first meetings at NATO headquarters Wednesday looking to push European nations over support for Ukraine and ramping up military spending.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to open new fronts in his tariffs war by announcing reciprocal levies on other countries as soon as Tuesday, branding this "the only fair way" to trade.

When President Donald Trump froze nearly all US foreign aid, Cambodia was forced to suspend workers removing dangerous mines from the country -- until China stepped in with the necessary funding.

The Associated Press said Tuesday that its White House reporter was barred from an event with President Donald Trump over the top US news agency's refusal to follow his order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.

The World Health Organization on Tuesday wrapped up its executive board meeting, held against the backdrop of the United States -- by far its largest donor -- heading for the exit.

US President Donald Trump accused the judges blocking his executive orders of committing a "serious violation" Tuesday as his administration veered towards a constitutional clash with the courts over his plans to radically downsize the government.

Pope Francis described Donald Trump's migrant deportations as a "major crisis" Tuesday, prompting a rebuke from the US president's border czar, who told the pontiff to "stick to the Catholic Church".

North Korea has given Russia 200 long-range artillery pieces, a South Korean defence ministry official told AFP on Tuesday, as Moscow and Pyongyang deepen their military ties.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen vowed on Tuesday to retaliate firmly against US President Donald Trump's decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.

South Korea's suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol blamed the "malicious" opposition for his decision to declare martial law, telling a court on Tuesday that their refusal to applaud him or shake his hand exposed their plans to "destroy" his government.

Venezuela sent two planes Monday to bring nearly 200 undocumented migrants back from the United States, saying it hoped for a "new beginning" in ties with Washington, which does not recognize Nicolas Maduro as the legitimate president.

World leaders were set to hold formal talks in Paris on Tuesday on artificial intelligence (AI), seeking elusive common ground on a technology subject to a global race for promised economic benefits.

A deluge of disinformation about a flu-like virus called HMPV is stoking anti-China sentiment across Asia and spurring unfounded concerns of renewed lockdowns, despite experts dismissing comparisons with the Covid-19 pandemic five years ago.