Venezuela: Maduro announces mass mobilisation in response to US threats
Nicolás Maduro has announced the mobilisation of more than four million civilian militia fighters, responding to what he describes as escalating threats from the USA. He pledged to arm and activate militias across…
North Korea: strong criticism of proposed new US missile defence system
North Korea has strongly condemned the US plan to develop a futuristic ‘Golden Dome’ missile defence system, warning it could trigger a nuclear arms race in space. The system, promoted by Donald Trump…
Japan: new premier calls snap election
Shigeru Ishiba, Japan’s newly-appointed prime minister, has dissolved parliament and announced snap elections for 27 October. His Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), along with its coalition partner, is expected to win, capitalising on Ishiba's…
Cyprus / Israel / Lebanon: Hezbollah leader threatens wider conflict
Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has warned that no place in Israel would be safe if a full-scale war erupts between the two foes, also threatening Cyprus and other Mediterranean regions. Hezbollah has…
Liz Truss’s trip a ‘dangerous stunt’
London’s Chinese embassy called Liz Truss’s trip to Taiwan a ‘dangerous political stunt’ which will bring nothing but harm to the UK. In a pre-briefed extract of her speech to the Prospect Foundation,…
Brazil: Bolsonaro leads massive rallies
President Bolsonaro has delivered fiery speeches to tens of thousands of supporters at rallies ahead of a divisive election on 2 October when opinion polls suggest he will be defeated. Bolsonaro has repeatedly…
Russia: 'blackmailing the world'
Ukraine's nuclear agency Enerhoatom says the Russians are ‘blackmailing the entire world’ with threats to blow up the Zaporizhzhia power plant. In a post on messaging app Telegram, Enerhoatom says Maj Gen Valery…
Solomon Islands: the Framework Agreement
On 25 March the Solomon Islands government announced it was ‘expanding’ security arrangements, ‘diversifying the country's security partnership with China’. Beijing is moving from island to island and wants to upgrade an airstrip…
Afghanistan: Christians at greater risk
In the wake of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, the country’s highly secretive Christian community began to experience a rapid increase in threats. Charities began moving the most vulnerable Christians and pastors out…
India: coping with coronavirus
India's home minister has offered 500 railway carriages for use as makeshift coronavirus hospital wards as New Delhi struggles to contain a spike in cases. Delhi has about 9,000 beds dedicated to Covid-19…
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