The EU’s decision to permanently freeze Russian assets is "an attack on the sovereignty of UN member states" and a form of "plundering," Cuban international relations expert Yosmany Fernández Pacheco told Sputnik. Cuban international relations expert Yosmany Fernández Pacheco has warned that the mo»»»

Lebanese authorities have received warnings, via closed diplomatic channels, of Israel's preparation for large-scale military operation, Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji said on Friday. Earlier in the day, a Lebanese military source told Sputnik that Israeli warplanes attacked several areas »»»

Officers from the Department of Internal Affairs of Pervomaisky district of Bishkek detained a suspect in large-scale fraud. The press service of the District Department of Internal Affairs reported. A woman O.G. filed a complaint with the Investigative Service. According to her, from May to the en»»»

Dubai: Saudi Arabia has taken a major step towards the future of urban mobility by announcing a partnership with US-based Archer Aviation, a global leader in vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft, aimed at introducing air taxi services in the Kingdom. The agreement was signed during the CoM»»»

Thailand and Cambodia agreed to halt border clashes along their disputed border, US President Donald Trump said on Friday. The two countries had brokered a ceasefire in July but Thailand suspended the agreement the following month after Thai soldiers were wounded by landmines.  US President Do»»»

Romania is on NATO's eastern flank, and it is feeling the heat from drone incursions attributed to Russia, and from the Trump administration's strategic shift away from Europe. We speak to Romanian President Nicușor Dan about how his country is faring with these headwinds, and also about tough econ»»»

The President dismissed Taalai Bazarbaev, Kyrgyzstan’s Ambassador to Italy. Sadyr Japarov signed a corresponding decree. The decision was made in connection with the completion of his diplomatic service. Taalai Bazarbaev has been dismissed from his post as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentia»»»

Chairman of the State Committee for National Security of Kyrgyzstan (SCNS) Kamchybek Tashiev visited military unit No. 2022 of the Border Service of the Kyrgyz Republic in Batken, where a ceremony was held to award servicemen who took part in installing fencing along the state border. The press ser»»»

An autotransformer for Kurpsai Hydropower Plant will be delivered from China earlier than originally scheduled, the press service of Electric Stations OJSC reported. According to the company, a delegation from the OJSC visited the production facilities of Shaanxi Hanzhong Transformer Co., Ltd. (Sha»»»

Dubai: The National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) has forecast partly cloudy to cloudy weather for Saturday, with a chance of rain in scattered areas, especially along the coast and in northern regions. Conditions are expected to turn more humid overnight and into Sunday morning across some coastal a»»»

A raccoon that broke into a Virginia store and joyfully drank its way through the liquor aisle is now suspected of a wider crime spree, officials say. A Hanover animal control officer suspects the stripe-tailed mammal also broke into a nearby karate studio and then raided the Department of Motor Ve»»»

As we have just celebrated International Volunteer Day, we turn our attention to real stories, not abstract ideas. We see a child arranging a small reading corner in his classroom. We see a young woman teaching younger children in a camp. We see a mother cooking extra meals for her neighbours in an»»»

The US ambassador to the UN has accused Rwanda of leading Africa's Great Lakes region toward war, just over a week after a peace deal was signed in Washington to end the decades-long conflict. US President Donald Trump Trump hailed the deal between DR Congo's President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwanda's»»»

This week brought a mix of glamour, drama and major policy shifts. Women led the conversation at the Red Sea Film Festival, while Palash Muchhal hit back at rumours after his wedding to Smriti Mandhana was cancelled. The UAE rolled out faster passport and Emirates ID renewals, changed Friday prayer»»»

Luigi Mangione, the man accused of fatally shooting United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in a case that sparked national attention, watched as new testimony and never-before-seen footage from the day of his arrest in a McDonald's was unveiled during a hearing this week. Mr Mangione has pleaded not »»»

Washington: Twenty US states filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration’s decision to impose a $100,000 fee on new H-1B visa petitions, arguing the policy is unlawful and threatens essential public services. The lawsuit targets a policy implemented by the Department of Homeland Security t»»»

Dubai: US President Donald Trump’s decision to allow Nvidia to sell its H200 artificial-intelligence chips to “approved customers” in China is rippling across global tech and geopolitical circles. Sign up for our daily business newsletter, Cheques & Balances.On the surface, the move appears to reop»»»

"Every moment of that abortion was a surprise to me," says Annie Ernaux. The French Nobel literature laureate is talking about an illegal abortion that nearly ended her life in 1963. She was a 23-year-old student with ambitions to become a writer. But as the first in a family of labourers and shopk»»»

Warehouses supplying the vast majority of Ukraine's pharmacies have been destroyed in a series of Russian attacks over recent months. Medical supplies worth about $200m (£145m) were destroyed in just two strikes in December and October. A large warehouse storing medicines in the city of Dnipro was »»»

BRUSSELS, Dec 12 (KUNA) -- European Union governments on Friday approved an agreement to indefinitely freeze Russian central bank assets held in Europe, removing a major hurdle to the possible future use of these funds to support Ukraine.Belgium, Bulgaria, Italy and Malta confirmed in a joint state»»»

A new Bollywood spy film is generating praise - and unease - in India and Pakistan for its contentious portrayal of the longstanding hostilities between the South Asian neighbours. Dhurandhar, which hit cinemas last week, plunges audiences into a high-octane world of espionage, gang wars and patrio»»»

When China’s President Xi Jinping inaugurated Peru’s Chancay megaport in November 2024, he was doing far more than opening a Chinese offshore project; he was executing a vision that has reshaped global power three times before and is poised to do so again. The $1.3bn deep-water facility, capable of»»»

Ukrainians hold signs during a protest demanding the use of frozen Russian assets on the sidelines of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council meeting in Brussels on Friday. Belgium has been blocking an EU plan to approve a large "reparations loan" for Ukraine backed by frozen Russian state asset»»»

Ukraine and its European backers are hoping to wait out US President Donald Trump’s term in office to pursue a war with Russia with the support of his successor, according to a professor at the Institute of European Studies in Belgrade, Stevan Gajic. Trump has expressed frustration with Ukrainian l»»»

Bulgaria, together with Belgium, Italy, and Malta, presented a joint declaration to the Council of the European Union in which the four countries insist that any decision on the use of frozen Russian assets must be in full compliance with EU and international law, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to»»»

US President Donald Trump has said the prime ministers of Thailand and Cambodia will halt fighting "effective this evening". Trump made the announcement after telephone conversations with the two leaders following deadly border clashes in recent days which have left at least 20 people dead and half»»»

For more than a century, the United States has attempted to shape political outcomes across Latin America, whether that be backing coups, toppling governments, or supporting authoritarian figures aligned with its strategic interests. Few of these efforts produced the stability sought in Washington.»»»

For more than a century, the United States has attempted to shape political outcomes across Latin America, whether that be backing coups, toppling governments, or supporting authoritarian figures aligned with its strategic interests. Few of these efforts produced the stability sought in Washington.»»»

When China’s President Xi Jinping inaugurated Peru’s Chancay megaport in November 2024, he was doing far more than opening a Chinese offshore project; he was executing a vision that has reshaped global power three times before and is poised to do so again. The $1.3bn deep-water facility, capable of»»»

Tunis, Dec. 12 (TAP) - The military cooperation between Tunisia and the United States, ways to strengthen it, and the agenda of the Tunisian-American Joint Military Commission, scheduled to be held in May in the U.S., were the focus of a phone call...»»»

The UN General Assembly has adopted a resolution calling on the Israeli occupation to comply with the International Court of Justice’s ruling and allow the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza. The resolution requires the Israeli occupation entity to provide food, water, medicine, and shelter to »»»

Former pro-basketball player Jason Collins, the first openly-homosexual male athlete in a major American professional sport, has announced that he has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer. Collins was diagnosed with stage four glioblastoma, he wrote in an article for sport broadca»»»

Four Turkish F-16s violated Greek airspace on Friday afternoon. According to reports, the Turkish fighter jets, two of them armed, entered the Athens Flight Information Region (FIR) in pairs without submitting a flight plan, flying over the central Aegean. In response, Greek fighter jets intercepte»»»

Tunis, Dec. 12 (TAP) - CEO of Visteon, Sachin Lawande, said that the company’s new technical center, inaugurated on Friday in the Lac area, will serve as a strategic engineering hub to strengthen the presence of the company, which specialises in...»»»

US President Donald Trump said on Friday that Thailand and Cambodia had agreed to halt fighting along their disputed border, which has killed at least 20 people this week. The latest fighting between the Southeast Asian neighbours, which stems from a long-running dispute over the colonial-era demar»»»

Angry French farmers are calling for more protests over the government-backed slaughter of cattle herds affected by so-called Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD). On Thursday there were clashes between riot police and demonstrators in the southern Ariège department, after vets were called in to destroy potent»»»

Tunis, Dec. 12 (TAP) - Former French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin called for exploring new forms of strategic cooperation between Tunisia and the European Union and for rethinking existing frameworks to ensure the interests of both sides.He...»»»

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - EU countries have agreed to freeze the Russian Central Bank's assets held in Europe for an indefinite period, Reuters reported on Friday. The frozen assets are worth 210 billion euros ($246 billion), according to the report. An indefinite freeze in lieu of a vote every six months»»»

At the turn of the year, Bulgaria is preparing to enter 2026 without an approved state budget. The government is expected to pull back the second draft of Budget 2026 from parliament, allowing the Council of Ministers to move toward adopting an extension law either in the final days of December or »»»

Iran "violently" arrested Nobel Peace Prize 2023 laureate Narges Mohammadi at a memorial ceremony on Friday, her supporters said. Mohammadi, who was granted temporary leave from prison in December 2024, was detained along with several other activists.  Iranian security forces on Friday "v»»»

Abu Dhabi: Q Mobility, the company responsible for managing and developing public parking in Abu Dhabi, announced the introduction of parking regulation in commercial areas of Mohammed Bin Zayed City, effective from December 15. The move, overseen by the Integrated Transport Centre under the Depart»»»

Palestinian sources dismissed Israeli claims circulating over the past two days that the Islamic Jihad movement is refusing to cooperate with Hamas by handing over what Israel says is the last body of an Israeli hostage in Gaza, a step Israel has linked to moving into the second phase of the ceasef»»»

The European Union has voted to keep Russian central bank assets frozen indefinitely despite opposition from member states. The bloc pushed through the controversial agenda by invoking emergency powers legislation to bypass the need for unanimous approval. The European Commission, and its head Ursu»»»

Benin's opposition figure and former defence minister Candide Azannai was arrested on Friday in Cotonou, according to a police source. It has yet to be confirmed whether his detention is linked to Sunday's foiled coup attempt.  Benin's former defence minister and prominent opposition figure, C»»»

Pope Leo XIV pictured in May addressing Catholic faithful from the Vatican balcony in Vatican City, Vatican. On Friday, the American-born Catholic Church head urged Italy's intelligence officials to ground national security in ethical principles and cautioned that efforts to preserve peace must not»»»

Taylor Swift broke down in tears after meeting survivors and families of the victims of the Southport stabbing attack, backstage footage from her Eras tour reveals. The star met privately with some of those affected by the attack in July 2024, which took place at a Taylor Swift-themed dance worksho»»»

Australia this week implemented a world-first ban on social media for under-16s, and France could soon introduce a similar measure. French lawmakers will in January debate a bill whose aim is to protect children’s mental health. Australia on Wednesday became the first country to introduce a social »»»

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz speaks to the media during a news conference in Jerusalem on Sunday. The German Foreign Ministry accused Russia's military intelligence of a disinformation campaign targeting Merz during February's general elections Pool Photo by Ariel Schalit/UPI | License Photo De»»»