MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia will not compromise on the deployment of NATO troops, strike weapons in Ukraine or Ukraine's NATO membership, this is absolutely unacceptable, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said in an interview with Sputnik. "Ukraine's membership in the North Atlantic b»»»

1/26Heavy rains have left several streets across Dubai waterlogged, causing travel disruptions and prompting authorities to urge motorists to drive carefully and avoid flood-prone areas. Ahmad Alotbi/Gulf News2/26Emergency teams remain on standby as showers continue across the city.Ahmad Alotbi/Gul»»»

Thousands of people gathered in central Sofia on Thursday evening for a protest calling for fair and free elections. The rally was announced a day earlier by the leader of “We Continue the Change,” Asen Vassilev, and took place in the area around the Triangle of Power. From the very start of the pr»»»

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday thanked the EU for its 90 billion-euro loan to plug the country's looming budget shortfalls, saying it "truly strengthens" Kyiv's defense. "This is significant support that truly strengthens our resilience," Zelensky said on X. "It is important that »»»

Washington: The State of Qatar and the United States of America held a session on regional and international cooperation, as part of the seventh strategic dialogue between the two countries in Washington, DC. The Qatari side was chaired by Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs H E Dr»»»

Doha: Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, and Deputy Amir H H Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Thani sent cables of congratulations to President of the Republic of Niger H E Lieutenant General Abdourahmane Tchiani on the occasion of his country’s Republic Day. Prime Minister and Minister of Forei»»»

Vodafone is no longer just a telecommunications operator; it is an essential player in Romania’s critical infrastructure for consumers, companies, and public institutions alike. Nedim Baytorun, the CEO of Vodafone Romania, explains for Business Review how the company became an industry in itself. b»»»

Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold his annual end-of-year press conference in Moscow on Friday, once again combined with the nationwide “Direct Line” question-and-answer session with citizens. The event is scheduled to begin at 12:00 Moscow time (09:00 GMT). The event is traditionally among»»»

Canada and the US will launch formal discussions to review their free trade agreement in mid-January, the office of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said. The prime minister confirmed to provincial leaders that Dominic LeBlanc, the country’s point person for US-Canada trade relations, “will meet»»»

TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance signed binding agreements to form a joint venture that will hand control of operations of TikTok's US app to American and global investors, according to a memo by TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew seen by Reuters. The deal, set to close on January 22, would end years of effor»»»

Dubai: ADNOC has secured a new $2 billion green financing facility backed by Korea Trade Insurance Corporation, taking its total green funding to $5 billion within just 18 months and underscoring how seriously the company is leaning into sustainable finance as it grows its business. Sign up for our»»»

Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan, seen here being arrested by FBI agents in April, was convicted by a jury on Thursday in connection to allegations of aiding an undocumented migrant evade arrest in her courthouse. Photo courtesy FBI Director Kash Patel/X Dec. 19 (UPI) -- A 12-person jury has fou»»»

Dubai: Dubai’s largest public parking operator, Parkin PJSC, has introduced new paid public parking zones in the Wasl Green Park community as part of its ongoing expansion across the city. In an announcement, Parkin said public parking tariffs are now in effect in the area under Zone Code 614W, wit»»»

BRUSSELS, Dec 19 (KUNA) -- European Union leaders reached an agreement early Friday to provide Ukraine with a 90 billion euros loan to cover its expected budget shortfalls, but failed to agree on using frozen Russian assets to finance the loan due to strong opposition from Belgium.The agreement, re»»»

Parents of children with thalassemia in India say they are devastated after life-saving blood transfusions left their children HIV-positive, confronting them with illness, social stigma, and uncertainty. Thalassemia is a genetic blood disorder that requires regular transfusions to manage severe ana»»»

DOHA: Qatar has once again emerged as one of the world’s most prosperous countries, securing a prominent position in the Forbes India 2025 ranking of the richest countries in the world by GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP). The ranking, derived from data compiled by the Inter»»»

DOHA: Minister of Interior and Commander of the Internal Security Force (Lekhwiya), H E Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, has held talks with Minister of Interior of the Kingdom of Morocco, H E Abdelouafi Laftit, in Doha. During the meeting at the National Command Centre (NCC), the two»»»

Hong Kong Fiduciary Association Limited (HKFA) hosted its 10th Anniversary Private Gala Dinner & Global Trust Summit on December 12 in Dubai. This event not only marked the second global celebration following Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, but also signified HKFA becoming Asia’s first private wealth advis»»»

A husband and wife have died after being trapped in a private sauna room that caught fire on Monday in Tokyo’s Akasaka district, BBC reports. The victims, identified as Yoko Matsuda, 37, a nail artist, and her husband Masanari, 36, who ran a beauty salon, were found collapsed on the sauna floor and»»»

North Korean soldiers crossed the inter-Korean land border 10 times in November, a South Korean lawmaker said Friday. In this April 2019 photo, South Korean soldiers walk alongside a barbed wire fence in the DMZ Peace Trail in Goseong. File Photo by Thomas Maresca/UPI | License Photo North Korean s»»»

Dear readers. I hope this letter finds you safe and well at the end of a turbulent week in the UAE. I write this after a frantic 24 hours that has seen rain disrupting roads, flights and businesses, so I do hope that the rain is passing you by without too much trouble. We’ve also reported on the tr»»»

WASHINGTON, Dec 19 (KUNA) -- The US army said it has killed five people in renewed airstrikes on two vessels engaged in narco-trafficking operations in the Eastern Pacific."On December 18, at the direction of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted lethal kinetic st»»»

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), along with its partners Eni and PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP), has signed a structured financing agreement of up to 40.4 billion dirhams ($11 billion). The financing will be used to monetize future midstream gas production from the Hail and Ghasha pr»»»

The ISIS group said the killing of US Pentagon personnel in Syria's ancient city of Palmyra was a "blow" to US forces and Syrian armed factions opposed to it, in its first public comment on the incident. Two US Army soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed on Saturday when an attacker target»»»

DOHA: Qatar is expected to be one of the fastest-growing economies in the region next year, with real GDP growth forecast to reach 5.2 percent, driven by rising liquefied natural gas (LNG) capacity, stronger export performance, and sustained diversification-related investment, according to Fitch So»»»

In 2025, a total of 2,088 foreign nationals were deported from Kyrgyzstan. Deputy Minister of Labor, Social Security and Migration Bakyt Darmankul uulu said at a press conference. According to him, the deportation procedure is carried out through a filtration center operating at Manas International»»»

A man suspected in the fatal shootings at Brown University and of a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor has been found dead in a New Hampshire storage facility after a five-day search that spanned several New England states, US authorities said Thursday. Claudio Neves Valente, 48, a for»»»

BT Properties marks its first year in the UAE with a high‑profile celebration at Coca-Cola Arena, shining the spotlight on the strong market response and it’s achievements to its flagship master community, WAADA, in Dubai South. The event was headlined by a live performance by the global pop sensat»»»

A husband and wife have died after being trapped in a private sauna room that caught fire on Monday in Tokyo’s Akasaka district, BBC reports. The victims, identified as Yoko Matsuda, 37, a nail artist, and her husband Masanari, 36, who ran a beauty salon, were found collapsed on the sauna floor and»»»

A meeting held between France, the United States and Saudi Arabia in Paris on Thursday resulted in an agreement to hold a conference in February aimed at supporting the Lebanese army. Lebanese army commander Gen. Rodolphe Haykal held meetings with French, US and Saudi officials to discuss ways of a»»»

Syrian, Kurdish and US officials are scrambling ahead of a year-end deadline to show some progress in a stalled deal to merge Kurdish forces with the Syrian state, according to several people involved in or familiar with the talks. Discussions have accelerated in recent days despite growing frustra»»»

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian rejected “humiliating conditions” set by the US for resuming nuclear talks, warning against any attempts to exert coercion, bullying, or any process that undermines Iran’s military capacities in the face of Israel. At a meeting with a group of political elites, p»»»

Dubai: Dubai International Airport has issued a travel advisory urging passengers to plan ahead as unstable weather continues to disrupt flight operations, triggering delays, cancellations and congestion at one of the world’s busiest aviation hubs. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques»»»

A 23-year-old Indian tailor from Bihar is celebrating a dream come true in Dubai after winning Dh100,000 in the Big Ticket draw. Mohammad Kaimullah Nasir, who has lived in Dubai for the past two years, joined the raffle fun after watching his colleagues regularly try their luck. Also Read: After 5 »»»

A company associated with the Titan group is set to handle waste collection in half of Sofia’s districts, following decisions announced by the Sofia Municipality on Thursday, Radio Free Europe reported. The firm in question is BKS Chistota, whose ownership in the past was linked to Titan Internatio»»»

The widespread adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is "likely" to displace people from jobs in a similar way seen during the Industrial Revolution, the governor of the Bank of England has said. Andrew Bailey said the UK needed to have the "training, education, [and] skills in place" so workers»»»

WASHINGTON, Dec 19 (KUNA) -- Troika Capitals on South Sudan called for stopping armed attacks, immediately returning to the ceasefire and ensuring humanitarian aid and operations by regional and international organizations in the country.In a joint statement adopted late Thursday, the Troika, which»»»

A simmering battle over the future of President Donald Trump's political movement exploded on one of the right's biggest stages Thursday, as prominent conservative influencers used Turning Point USA's annual youth conference to attack each other and their competing visions. The feuding threatened t»»»

Dubai: Heavy rainfall across the UAE has caused wadis to overflow, creating striking scenes captured in videos shared on social media. Click here to go to the live weather blog Mountain and valley areas, including parts of Al Ain, Tawiyin, Ras Al Khaimah, and the eastern region, are experiencing si»»»

In October 2025, Bulgaria recorded a current account deficit of 1.0646 billion euros, marking the largest monthly shortfall since September 2022, according to preliminary data from the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) on the country’s balance of payments. The trade deficit also widened sharply, reachi»»»

After two decades of stalled talks, Cyprus and Lebanon finally demarcated their offshore Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) on 26 November, in an agreement that caused few ripples, despite its sensitivity and importance. As the crow flies, the distance between these two Mediterranean nations is less th»»»

The fall of the Sudanese city of El-Fasher in November led to horrendous reports of mass killing. In recent days, British parliamentarians were told that at least 60,000 people are thought to have been murdered in the first three weeks after the city fell to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia, »»»

Dubai: Gold prices in Dubai are once again brushing against record territory, testing the patience and budgets of jewellery buyers while reinforcing the appeal of bullion for long-term investors. Local retail rates firmed this week in step with global markets, with 24-karat gold trading at Dh522.25»»»

President Rumen Radev is scheduled to meet with representatives of the Velichie parliamentary group at 10:00 a.m. here on Friday. The meeting is part of the procedure for consultations with representatives of parliamentary groups in the 51st National Assembly following the government’s resignation,»»»

The State Committee for National Security (SCNS) of Kyrgyzstan has warned coal market participants against artificially increasing coal prices in Osh region. A meeting was held at the SCNS with representatives of coal mining companies, investors of Kyrgyzkomur OJSC, owners of fuel depots, intermedi»»»

Keith Lee has won Creator of the Year at the inaugural TikTok Awards in the US. Hosted by TV personality La La Anthony at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles, the fan-voted awards ceremony doled out logo-shaped trophies to content creators on the platform across fourteen categories, including St»»»

The Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan has amended several of its resolutions on taxation and import of goods. The corresponding resolution was signed by the Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Adylbek Kasymaliev. The document aims to increase excise tax revenues to the national budget, strengthen»»»

In Kyrgyzstan, material damage from emergencies, fires, and accidents has exceeded 25 billion soms over the past five years. The press service of the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES) reported. It is noted that during this period, rescuers saved 1,664 people. «Despite the increase in accidents»»»

A ceremonial opening of the city’s central square took place in Talas following its full reconstruction. At the same time, the main New Year tree was lit up. The square was equipped with new modern lighting, the City Hall’s press service reported. Residents and guests were congratulated on the open»»»

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk attends the EU Council Summit in Brussels, Belgium, Thursday. EU leaders are meeting to discuss the latest developments in Ukraine, the EU's next multiannual financial framework, the EU enlargement process, and the geoeconomic situation in the European Union. EPA/O»»»