A US aircraft carrier arrived in South Korea Friday for the first time in nearly five years, ahead of joint drills in a show of force aimed at the nuclear-armed North.. "The deployment of the carrier USS Ronald Reagan to Busan demonstrates the strength of the South Korea-US alliance," a South Korean defence ministry official told AFP. The visit aims to "deter North Korea's nuclear and missile threats", the official added.
Standing on a fortified Kashmir street, an Indian tourist poses triumphantly for her husband's camera, clutching the national flag in each hand and flanked by two soldiers carrying rifles.. "If Kashmir is a part of India," a tourist from West Bengal told AFP, "then we should ask why there are so many security forces everywhere." pzb/gle/mca/qan
Asian markets fell again Friday as part of a global sell-off fuelled by recession fears after central banks around the world ramped up interest rates to fight decades-high inflation.. "Given the now even starker contrast between the (central bank's) policy stance and central banks everywhere else in the world... (the) MoF will need to be in this intervention game for the long haul and in size if it is to have much hope of arresting yen weakness in an ongoing strong dollar environment," said National Australia Bank's Ray Attrill.
The United States is seeking more pressure on Myanmar's junta through the United Nations and is urging the international community not to recognize upcoming elections, a senior official said Thursday.. "There is wide acknowledgement that the regime needs to feel more pressure," State Department Counselor Derek Chollet, who is leading US diplomacy on Myanmar during the annual United Nations General Assembly, told AFP. He pointed to outrage over an air strike this month that killed 11 schoolchildren as well as the July execution of four prominent prisoners by the junta, which threw out the elected government in February 2021, ending a decade-long experiment in democracy.
Brazil's business sector, which views the economic policies of leftist presidential hopeful Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva with suspicion, will again vote for incumbent Jair Bolsonaro, but this time with more reservation, experts say.. Businessman Luis Stuhlberger insists he will "never again" vote for the "psychopath" Bolsonaro.
The top US and Chinese diplomats meet Friday in New York as soaring tensions show signs of easing, but Beijing issued a new warning against support for Taiwan.. In a sign of smoother ties, Wang said he met in New York with US climate envoy John Kerry despite China's announcement after Pelosi's visit that it was curbing cooperation on the issue, a key priority for Biden.
At a time when prickly questions are being asked about Qatar and its hosting of the World Cup, Khalifa Al Haroon offers a smile, a sigh and a shrug as he seeks to explain its mysteries.. Haroon, who is now a consultant to the Qatar Football Association and an eSports entrepreneur, said he is excited about the World Cup "because people can now come here and experience it for themselves and make their own judgements instead of just believing what's written".
Ukraine's farmland is famed for its rich black soil and considered a breadbasket for the world, but on Thursday, after months of war, residents of a frontline farming village were queueing for food.. But on Thursday, community leader Olexander Nesmiyan -- the tallest man in the village -- was overseeing the distribution of food parcels.
The UK's new government unveils Friday multibillion-pound measures aimed at supporting households and businesses hit by decades-high inflation.. While the tax reversals are not strictly cuts, the government could announce Friday reduced levies on home purchases.
A protest to demand justice for 43 Mexican students who disappeared in 2014 turned violent on Thursday, leaving 11 police officers injured, authorities said.. "Consequently, 11 police were injured by firecrackers and bruises from blows to different parts of the body," it said.
