20-03-2023 BEIJING: President Xi Jinping heads to Russia on Monday hoping to deliver a breakthrough on Ukraine as China seeks to position itself as a peacemaker. Freshly reappointed for a third term in power, Xi is pushing a greater role for China on the global stage and was crucial in …

20-03-2023 MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin made a surprise visit to Mariupol, state media reported on Sunday, his first to the city since it was captured after a lengthy siege at the start of Moscow’s offensive in Ukraine. The trip comes after an arrest warrant was issued for Putin by …

20-03-2023 Bureau Report BRISBANE/ MELBOURNE: More than 11,000 Sikhs took part in the second phase of Khalistan Referendum voting at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre amid a massive wave of Indian cyber security mercenary attacks on the electronic voting machines. There was a disruption in the voting thrice as …

20-03-2023 CAIRO: Israeli and Palestinian Authority (PA) officials are meeting in Egypt for talks amid criticism and calls for a boycott by Palestinian political parties. The one-day meeting, which is also being attended by Egyptian, US and Jordanian officials, began on Sunday in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh. …

19-03-2023 Bureau Report + BBC NEW DELHI/ KYIV: Rishi Dwivedi is one of thousands of Indian students evacuated from Ukraine a year ago but he’s now back studying in Lviv, despite the threat the war poses to his safety. “Air raid sirens alerting us about incoming missile or drone attacks …

19-03-2023 UNITED NATIONS/ KABUL: The United Nations Security Council has renewed the UN Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) for another year while also asking for recommendations on the best way for the international community to continue its work in the Taliban-ruled country. The 15-member council on Thursday unanimously adopted two resolutions, …

19-03-2023 CAIRO: Egypt’s foreign minister has said talks with Turkey on the possibility of restoring ties to the ambassadorial level would happen at “the appropriate time” during the first visit to Cairo by Turkey’s top diplomat since relations ruptured a decade ago. At a joint news conference on Saturday Egyptian …

19-03-2023 ROME: In 2018, Maria Silvia Fiengo and Francesca Pardi were among Italy’s first same-sex couples to be registered as parents. The mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, took a progressive stance and allowed children born to parents of the same gender to be acknowledged in the absence of clear national …

19-03-2023 ISTANBUL: Finland’s bid to join NATO has finally secured the backing of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey had blocked Finland’s application for months, complaining it had supported “terrorists”. At a press conference in Ankara with his Finnish counterpart, Erdogan praised Finland’s “authentic and concrete steps” on Turkish security. …

19-03-2023 PARIS: Protesters have clashed with police again in central Paris over the French government’s pension reforms. Thousands of demonstrators lit fires and some threw firecrackers at police, who used tear gas to disperse them. It is the second night of unrest since President Emmanuel Macron decided to push through …