WORLD

In his Christmas Urbi et Orbi address, Pope Leo XIV renews his plea for peace, reminding the world that it is both God’s gift and humanity’s shared responsibility. VATICAN | VATICAN NEWS | As war continues to scar the world, Pope Leo XIV used his Christmas Urbi et Orbi message to renew his appeal …

  COMMENT | MICHAEL BURLEIGH | Until a few days ago, it had never crossed my mind that people across Europe – including Londoners like me – were living in a strife-afflicted hell hole, “suffocated” by regulations, stripped of political liberties, and bound for “civilizational erasure.” So, it was with …

LOS ANGELES | Xinhua | Hundreds of Chinese and Americans, including lawmakers, diplomats and world champions, gathered at Los Angeles County’s Pacific Palms Resort to commemorate the 54th anniversary of China-U.S. “Ping-Pong Diplomacy.” Chinese Consul General in Los Angeles Guo Shaochun described “Ping-Pong Diplomacy” over five decades ago as “an …

Vatican | VATICAN NEWS | “I once again make this appeal to all people of good will: that, at least on the feast of the birth of the Saviour, one day of peace may be respected,” said Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday, 23 December, from Castel Gandolfo. This as he launched an …

BEIJING | Xinhua | From the server racks of a São Paulo university to the trading desks of Dubai, the hum of global innovation has changed its tune by late 2025. When engineers across the world open the “hood” of their newest artificial intelligence (AI) applications, they increasingly find an …

BEIJING | Xinhua |  When future historians look back on the once-in-a-century global transformation and trace the underlying logic of evolving international relations, they will surely recognize Sept. 1, 2025 as a pivotal moment — when Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the Global Governance Initiative (GGI). Prior to this, Beijing …

WASHINGTON | Xinhua | U.S. President Donald Trump announced Monday that the U.S. Navy will build two new “Trump-class” warships, which he has claimed will be “the fastest, the biggest, and by far 100 times more powerful than any battleship ever built.” At a press conference along with Defense Secretary …

OSLO | Xinhua |  Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said on Monday that he would summon U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Kenneth Howery for talks following U.S. President Donald Trump’s appointment of a special envoy to Greenland. On Sunday, Trump appointed Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as the U.S. special envoy …

BEIJING, CHINA | Xinhua | U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order setting a 2028 target for returning U.S. astronauts to the Moon and developing space defense technologies. The order, titled “ENSURING AMERICAN SPACE SUPERIORITY,” vowed to “return Americans to the Moon by 2028 through the Artemis …

GAZA | Xinhua | By the end of 2025, the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip appeared to be holding, a development many credited to the United States. Yet a closer look at the whole year and the two-year war reveals a different reality. From unsettling remarks about taking over Gaza …