WORLD

LONDON | Xinhua |  There is a long tradition of Britons complaining about the grey, rainy summers. However, that reality is now changing, as an extended spell of extreme heat and drought has swept across the country. FARMING UNDER PRESSURE In the fields of Leicestershire in England, heat scorched the …

  Here is why the latest chokehold could threaten a critical harvest and global food security   COMMENT | IRYNA SKUBII | While the world’s attention is fixated on the US blockade of Iranian ports and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, Russia has been subjecting Ukraine to a blockade …

Accusations of plagiarism have become a potent way to undermine someone’s credibility, and if a claim is substantiated, the plagiarist is seen as dishonest   COMMENT | ROGER J. KREUZ | After a meteoric rise to the top ranks of British academia, scholar Jason Arday was found dead at his London …

  BEIJING | Xinhua | Inside a makeshift restaurant, a humanoid robot gripped a snack with a pair of tongs, placed it in a microwave, turned the timer dial and then moved on to deal with another order — all under the watchful eyes of judges. The restaurant-service contest, held …

  SAN FRANCISCO |  Xinhua |  U.S. electric vehicle maker Tesla will launch its Cybercab robotaxi early September, Tesla-focused news outlet Teslarati reported. The launch is scheduled for Sept. 3 in Austin, Texas, where the company is headquartered, said Teslarati, which received an invitation to the event. Tesla has not …

UNITED NATIONS | Xinhua | The Security Council on Friday held its second straw poll on the candidates for the next UN secretary-general. “The second round of straw polls has taken place,” said Christina Markus Lassen, the UN ambassador of Denmark, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the Security …

BEIJING | Xinhua | Half a century ago, a “barefoot doctor” in rural China might have carried little more than a bag of basic medicines, a few syringes and a dozen or so needles. Today, those humble practitioners have given way to a vast and diverse healthcare workforce operating within …

  WASHINGTON | Xinhua | The U.S. national debt has surpassed 40 trillion dollars for the first time in history, according to data released by the Treasury Department on Wednesday. The data shows that debt held by the public and intragovernmental holdings stood at 32.266 trillion dollars and 7.782 trillion …

ANALYSIS | URN | Uganda’s candidate for United Nations Secretary-General, Ambassador Olara Otunnu, has called for sweeping reforms of the world body, stronger intervention in armed conflicts and greater efforts to ensure emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence benefit all of humanity. Otunnu made the case for his candidacy on …

  COMMENT | CRISPIN KAHERU |  Anyone who watched Olara Otunnu face the UN General Assembly in this week’s interactive dialogue saw something different in modern diplomacy. He answered hard questions without notes, without hedging, and without losing his composure, meeting probing queries from ambassadors with clarity and, occasionally, his characteristic …