World News

China will boost spending on U.S. products in exchange for the rolling back of some tariffs under an initial trade deal signed by the world’s two largest economies on Wednesday, defusing an 18-month row but leaving numerous thorny issues unresolved.

Russia and China have responded negatively to Tuesday’s decision by their European partners in the Iran nuclear deal to trigger a formal dispute resolution process in response to Tehran’s actions in violation of the 2015 agreement.

Russian President Vladimir Putin called for major constitutional changes in his annual state of the nation address Wednesday, heightening speculation that the long-time leader is looking to hold onto power after his fourth presidential term expires in 2024.

In his annual state of the nation address in Moscow, Putin announced his wish to reform the Russian constitution. ‘I truly believe that it is time to introduce certain changes to our country’s main law,’ Putin said. Shortly afterward the government resigned en masse, not in protest but seemingly to pave the way for these reforms.

The latest talks hosted by the U.S. Treasury produced some progress but failed to achieve a comprehensive agreement on the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

French President Emmanuel Macron is hosting several African leaders this week to discuss Islamic extremism that is spreading across the continent, seeming to give heed to a recent warning from a French philosopher that a Rwanda-style genocide is developing there.

Iran announced that it would arrest several individuals involved with the downing of a Ukrainian passenger jet last week after widespread public discontent forced the regime to acknowledge that it had killed the 176 people on board by mistake.

The U.S.-China trade war is set to enter a new, quieter phase on Wednesday as U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He sign an initial trade deal that aims to vastly increase Chinese purchases of U.S. manufactured products, agricultural goods, energy, and services.

Iran has had a turbulent past week, marked by more than a hundred Iranian deaths and dramatically increased tensions with the U.S. As it enters into the third day of protests fueled by popular anger over the government’s handling of a downed passenger jet, some observers argue this is the most vulnerable the Islamic Republic’s regime has been since its founding in 1979.

Iranian social media postings urged citizens to take to the streets for a fifth day on Wednesday, after the admission by the authorities that they had accidentally brought down a passenger plane after days of denials stoked public outrage.

Britain, France, and Germany formally accused Iran on Tuesday of violating the terms of its 2015 agreement to curb its nuclear program, which eventually could lead to the reimposing of U.N. sanctions lifted under the deal.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson rejected Scotland’s demand for a second independence referendum, nearly six years after Scots voted to remain a part of the United Kingdom.

A volcanic eruption in the Philippines continues to spew lava half a mile into the sky, creating lightning bolts, and threatening to erupt again even as tens of thousands of people continue to flee the region and hundreds of flights have been canceled or delayed.

Following a brief lull, Lebanese protesters returned to the streets, blocking several roads around the capital, Beirut, and other areas of the country on Tuesday in renewed rallies against a ruling elite they say has failed to address the economy’s downward spiral.

At least two Iranian journalists at a state-owned media outlet reportedly resigned from their jobs, and another left a while back, apologizing for “the 13 years I told you lies” to her supporters as Tehran grapples with the fallout from protests stemming from a cover-up of its accidental downing of a Ukrainian airliner.

Clouds of ash and tremors from the Taal volcano near the capital of the Philippines forced thousands to flee Sunday as the government planned to evacuate hundreds more.

Protests in Iran continued for a third day on Monday after the regime admitted over the weekend to accidentally downing a Ukrainian passenger jet carrying 176 people, killing everyone on board.

Iran conceded on Saturday to having made a ‘disastrous mistake’ in shooting down a Ukrainian airliner that was carrying 176 passengers, an allegation the regime initially denied.

An American Navy ship was approached by a Russian Navy ship in the north Arabian sea last Thursday when the Russian ship made an ‘aggressive’ maneuver, US officials said, Russian officials, responding by pointing the finger at the US.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Sunday said Iran ‘probably and could have been’ planning to target the U.S. embassy in Baghdad and three other diplomatic facilities abroad in the days leading to the American strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani.