Russian citizens under 14 will no longer be able to travel to Abkhazia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and South Ossetia using their birth certificates. The website of the Border Service of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) reported. The changes are stipulated in federal law and will tak»»»

At least 418 people died in air crashes in 2025. This data is presented on the Aviation Safety Network portal, which collects data on civil aviation incidents from around the world. The monitoring includes aircraft with a capacity of 14 people or more. According to these statistics, in 2025, 352 pa»»»

Dubai: Commuters across Dubai and Sharjah faced significant delays on Monday morning following a series of reported crashes on major arterial roads, prompting Dubai Police to issue a fresh advisory on road safety, as students returned to classrooms after the holiday break. The disruption began duri»»»

Precious metal prices have risen after the US capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro increased investors' concerns about geopolitical risks. In Monday morning trade in Asia, gold was about 1.8% higher at around $4,408 (£3,282) an ounce, while silver was up close to 3.5%, as money was moved »»»

US President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at the Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida on Saturday, January 3, 2026. Photo by Nicole Combeau/UPI | License Photo Jan. 4 (UPI) -- The International Bar Association on Sunday expressed concerns over the United States military interventi»»»

Dubai: Weather conditions across the UAE are expected to remain unsettled until Thursday, with dusty conditions, active winds, changing cloud cover and occasional chances of light rain, the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) said. Forecasters said different parts of the country will see varying c»»»

Washington: The Trump administration sought to blunt criticism of its Venezuela operation, arguing that the arrest of Nicolas Maduro was a narrowly targetted law-enforcement action rather than the opening of a new war or military occupation. Speaking on NBC’s Meet the Press, Secretary of State Marc»»»

The Cuban government says 32 Cuban nationals were killed during a US military operation in Venezuela that led to the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The claim has not been independently verified by Washington authorities but highlighted by Havana as a central grievance. President Do»»»

Donald Trump has warned Venezuela's new leader Delcy Rodríguez she could "pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro" if she "doesn't do what's right". His comments to US magazine The Atlantic came as the country's deposed president Nicolás Maduro was set to appear in a New York court on Mon»»»

Caracas: At least 40 people, including military personnel and civilians, were killed in a US strike on Venezuela early Saturday, The New York Times reported, citing a senior Venezuelan official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Washington carried out a "large-scale strike against Venezuela", an»»»

Any prolonged US effort to control Venezuela would likely face fierce resistance similar to what Washington encountered during the Vietnam or Iraq wars, Daniel Shaw, a professor of Latin American Studies at City University of New York, has told RT. In an interview aired on Sunday, the scholar sugge»»»

Also In This Package Philippines: $106.2 billion in projects underway Philippines flood scam probe goes live: What to expect Philippines expands senior citizen support Freehold or leasehold? Philippines' 99-year lease law Manila: Yes, the culture of kickbacks (affectionately known as 'tongpats') he»»»

Dubai: The UAE property market heads into 2026 from a position of strength, but the forces shaping demand are changing. The next phase will not be defined by headline launches or speculative momentum. Instead, it will be driven by where long-term capital is flowing, how people move around cities, a»»»

Dubai: OPEC+ has decided not to increase oil production for now, opting to keep output unchanged through the first three months of the year. The group is taking a cautious approach as it watches political developments in Venezuela, even though global oil supplies are already more than sufficient to»»»

Deputy Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Dan Bongino (pictured next to Attorney General Pam Bondi) speaks during a press conference at the Department of Justice Headquarters in Washington, DC on December 4. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo Jan. 4 (UPI) -- Former New York »»»

A moderate 5.4-magnitude earthquake struck northern India's Assam state early Monday morning, according to the US Geological Survey. The shallow quake was centered three kilometres outside of the village of Dhing near India's border with Bhutan and hit around 4:17 am (2247 GMT on Sunday). The USGS »»»

Oil prices fell on Monday after a US military operation seized Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, whose country has the world's biggest proven crude reserves. Increased volumes of Venezuelan oil entering the market would add to oversupply concerns and put further pressure on oil prices, which have f»»»

South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung is set to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping as he seeks to reset frayed ties with his country's biggest trading partner. Regional security and Beijing's unofficial ban on Korean pop culture are also on the agenda for Monday's meeting, which is their second summit »»»

Venezuela’s Supreme Court ordered Vice President Delcy Rodriguez to assume the role of interim president after Nicolas Maduro was kidnapped by US forces from Caracas and flown to New York to face criminal charges. In a Saturday ruling, the court’s Constitutional Chamber said Rodriguez would assume »»»

A group of self-described climate activists has claimed responsibility for a massive power outage that hit five districts in southwestern Berlin, saying the action targeted the fossil fuel industry and “the rich.” Up to 50,000 households and 2,200 commercial entities were affected by the blackout i»»»

In a seismic shift for Latin America's most volatile nation, Delcy Rodríguez has stepped into Venezuela's acting presidency following a bold US special forces operation that toppled longtime strongman Nicolas Maduro on January 3, 2026. The 57-year-old firebrand, a key architect of Venezuela's socia»»»

Despite having little interest in football, Steve Coogan is starring in a new film about former Manchester United hero Roy Keane - and reveals he was with Keane's teammate David Beckham the night he met Victoria. Steve Coogan is up front about not caring who plays up front. He is not a football fan»»»

India is one of the world's fastest-growing aviation markets. IndiGo and Air India, which together hold over 90% of the market, have ordered nearly 1,500 planes over the next decade, highlighting soaring passenger demand. This expansion hinges on Boeing and Airbus, which together supply 86% of the »»»

The National Bank of Romania, as administrator of the SaFIR financial instruments depository and settlement system, becomes a member of the European Central Securities Depository Association (ECSDA) starting with January 1, 2026, according to a press release from the bank.ECSDA represents 40 nation»»»

The Investment and Development Bank (BID) plans to increase its capital by 100 million euros in 2026 to boost its financial intervention capacity, support a larger volume of investments and diversify the financial instruments available to companies, particularly SMEs and the public sector.'BID inte»»»

The value of gross written premiums on Romania's insurance market (companies authorised and supervised by the ASF and branches) amounted to RON 18.7 billion in the first nine months of 2025, up 11% compared with the same period last year, according to a report published by the Financial Supervisory»»»

The Chamber of Deputies adopted in a plenary meeting on last Tuesday the re-examination of the Law on the payment of private pensions, following Constitutional Court Decision No 676 of 25 November 2025, published in the Official Journal of Romania, Part I, No 1153 of 12 December 2025.A total of 199»»»

Banca Comerciala Romana (BCR) listed on December 23 a new Eurobond issue on the Main Market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB), worth EUR 500 million. The bonds were listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol BCR31E and have a maturity of 6 years. This is BCR’s second bond is»»»

According to the president of the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB), Radu Hanga, Romania's capital market has entered a new stage of maturity in 2025, recording healthy growth supported by liquidity, a broader investor base and listed companies."2025 confirms that Romania's capital market has entered »»»

The reference rate for consumer loans (IRCC) stands at 5.68% per annum, down from 6.06% per annum published three months ago, which had been the highest level recorded to date, according to data published by the National Bank of Romania (BNR).The index is calculated as the arithmetic average of the»»»

University professor Xavier Crettiez admits that he doesn't know the real names of many of the students on his course. This is a highly unusual state of affairs in the world of academia, but Prof Crettiez's work is far from standard. Instead, he helps train France's spies. "I rarely know the intell»»»

People take part in a protest against Saudi Arabia in the southern port city of Aden, Yemen, on December 30. File Photo by Najeeb Mohamed/EPA Jan. 4 (UPI) -- Saudi-backed government forces have reclaimed oil-rich territory from United Arab Emirates-supported, armed separatists in Yemen. The Souther»»»

The Government has okayed, for 2026, a contingent of 90,000 new foreign workers admitted to the Romanian labor market, to cover the personnel deficit in several fields, the Ministry of Labor announced on last Tuesday."The measure comes in the context in which employers have repeatedly reported vaca»»»

Managers from the industry, construction and retail trade sectors anticipate a moderate decline in economic activity and an upward trend in prices for December 2025 - February 2026 period, according to the National Institute of Statistics (INS) data.According to the survey, 17.5 percent of managers»»»

In a key highlight last week, the Embassy hosted prominent Romanian business leaders for a special presentation on India’s rising economy, delivered by Mr. Bhuvnesh Kumar, Deputy Secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, ...»»»

The net assets of the 250 open-end and closed-end funds, local and foreign, increased in November by 3.2%, to the level of 59.7 billion lei (11.7 billion euros), and for the entire year 2025 the increase is 23.5%, according to data transmitted by the Association of Fund Administrators (AAF).The net»»»

The target of reducing the budget deficit will only be achieved through firm management of public resources and more efficient revenue collection, draw the attention of PwC Romania representatives."At the end of a difficult year, with many political turmoil, macroeconomic volatility and tax increas»»»

The execution of the general consolidated budget ended with a nominal deficit of 121.77 billion RON, respectively 6.4% of GDP, after the first 11 months of 2025 down by 0.74 percentage points compared to the deficit recorded in the same period of 2024, of 7.15% of GDP, the Ministry of Finance annou»»»

The budget deficit recorded in November 2025 stood at 6.4% of GDP, compared with 7.15% of 2024 GDP , amounting to RON 121 billion versus RON 125 billion, Finance Minister Alexandru Nazare announced on last Tuesday evening at a briefing held at the end of the Government meeting."I have good news reg»»»

Romania enters 2026 with better-balanced public finances, rising revenues, and a solid foundation for a responsible and sound budget next year, Finance Minister Alexandru Nazare stated."Budget execution for the first 11 months of 2025, published today [Monday, editor's note] by the Ministry of Fina»»»

The Minister of Finance, Alexandru Nazare, announces that, on the penultimate day 2025, the European Commission transferred over 586 million euros to the accounts opened at the National Bank of Romania, amounts requested through the 2021–2027 Transport Program, from the Cohesion Fund and the Europe»»»

President of the Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR) Simina Tanasescu announced on last Monday that the referral filed by the High Court of Cassation and Justice (ICCJ) regarding the new draft law of the Bolojan Government on magistrates' pensions reform has been postponed to 16 January due to a »»»

Turkey, Romania, and Bulgaria announced a series of joint activities in January 2026 aimed at detecting and monitoring drifting mines in the Black Sea within the trilateral initiative, https://mezha.net/ reports. Information about this was confirmed during a press briefing by the Turkish Ministry o»»»

Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan and his counterpart from the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Dick Schoof, visited, on last Tuesday, Air Base 71 "General Emanoil Ionescu" from Campia Turzii, where they met with the military, with whom they discussed the missions carried out and the operational conditions.Ac»»»

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania is closely monitoring the situation in Venezuela, in close coordination with its partners in the European Union. A community with Romanian roots lives in this country. The first priority for the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the safety of Romania»»»

Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal thanked Romania for its decision to join the American Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) mechanism and for its contribution of 50 million euros in support of Ukraine's defense."Romania joins the PURL and contributes ?50 million for this initiative.»»»

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) announced that Romania is joining the US Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) mechanism to support Ukraine's defence and is allocating 50 million euros for this purpose.According to a MAE release, the Government adopted a decision under which Romania wi»»»

Yoon Ga-eun was not a name many would have recognised in South Korea. That is until her movie about a teenager who is a survivor of sexual violence became a dark-horse hit. "It hasn't really sunk in yet," indie filmmaker Ms Yoon told BBC Korean at a studio in Seoul in late November. "Now I just fee»»»

A former US administration official and the wife of a senior aide to President Donald Trump has suggested that Washington will “soon” take over Greenland in a cryptic social media post. In a post on X on Saturday, Katie Miller shared a map of Greenland overlaid with the American flag and captioned »»»

NEW YORK, Jan 4 (KUNA) -- New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani criticized the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, describing the move as an "act of war and a violation of US federal and international laws." CNN reported late Saturday that Mamdani spoke by phone with President »»»