Category: Global
Coverage of geopolitics, international relations, and current affairs from a global perspective, including international organisations, cross-border cooperation, climate summits, and worldwide security trends.
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Thailand and Cambodia signed an expanded ceasefire on Sunday (Oct. 26), witnessed by U.S. President Donald Trump at the ASEAN Summit in Malaysia. The deal builds on a July truce that ended five days of border clashes which killed 48 and displaced 300,000. Key points:• Prime Ministers Anutin Charnvirakul and Hun Manet pledged to withdraw…
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Malaysia has formalised a new trade agreement with the United States, witnessed by President Donald Trump during the 47th ASEAN Summit on 26 October. The deal secures a 19% tariff rate first agreed in August, while exempting about 60% of Malaysia’s RM200 billion in US exports — including semiconductors and pharmaceuticals — which remain zero-rated.…
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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Ukraine must develop its own air defence systems to reduce reliance on Western partners. Nearly 60% of Ukraine’s weapons are now domestically produced, but Kyiv still depends on imported missiles and defence technology. At a London meeting of the “Coalition of the Willing”, Zelenskyy joined UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer,…
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The United States and Qatar have warned that the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) could harm trade, investment, and energy cooperation unless it is revised. In a joint letter US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Qatar’s Minister of Energy Saad al-Kaabi called the law an “existential threat” to Europe’s competitiveness and energy…
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In an interview with the Financial Times, Lawrence Wong, Singapore’s Prime Minister, outlined his perspective on China’s evolving global role and the shifting balance of power. Wong noted China’s “growing confidence” in its developmental model, stressing that the country “will not converge with Western norms” but will instead “find its own path to modernity.” He…
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General Secretary To Lam of the Communist Party of Vietnam met with Bulgarian President Rumen Radev in Sofia, marking a new chapter in bilateral relations as both countries celebrate 75 years of diplomatic ties. The two leaders announced the upgrade of relations to a Strategic Partnership, making Bulgaria the first Balkan nation to achieve this…
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The European Union and Egypt held their first-ever summit in Brussels on Wednesday (Oct. 22), marking a major step in their strategic partnership. The meeting brought together European Council President António Costa, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. • The summit reaffirmed a shared commitment to stability, peace,…
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UN Secretary-General António Guterres has warned that “military expenditure trends show that we are increasingly investing more in death than in people’s prosperity and well-being,” as he cautioned that rising debt, inequality, and trade tensions are undermining global development and stability. Speaking at the 16th UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva, Guterres…
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The US has announced new sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia’s largest oil producers, as Washington seeks to pressure Moscow into negotiating an end to the war in Ukraine. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the move targets key sources of funding for the Kremlin, warning that the US “will take further action if necessary” to…
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Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa have agreed to accelerate the implementation of their 2023 Defence Cooperation Agreement, reaffirming closer strategic and economic ties between the two nations. During bilateral talks in Jakarta, both leaders discussed advancing trade, defence, and political cooperation, including potential steps towards a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement…
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