CNN — China’s leader Xi Jinping on Monday vowed to bolster national security and build the military into a “great wall of steel,” in the first speech of his precedent-breaking third term as president. Speaking at the closing of the annual meeting of China’s rubber-stamp parliament, Xi underscored the need to comprehensively modernize national defense […]
Hong Kong CNN — China’s rubber-stamp legislature has appointed Li Qiang, a long-time aide of leader Xi Jinping, as premier, the man tasked with reviving the world’s second-largest economy after three years of zero-Covid restrictions. The National People’s Congress endorsed Li in a largely ceremonial vote at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing […]
Hong Kong CNN — China’s outgoing Premier Li Keqiang has announced the country’s lowest GDP growth target in decades, highlighting the domestic and global challenges the world’s second largest economy still faces despite its decision late last year to ditch draconian anti-Covid measures. Li set a target of about 5% growth for 2023 during the […]
A version of this story appeared in the March 3 edition of CNN’s Royal News, a weekly dispatch bringing you the inside track on Britain’s royal family. Sign up here. London CNN — Royals speak through actions more than words, which often leaves royal commentators reading into what they do without the benefit of an […]
Hong Kong CNN — Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko – a close ally of Vladimir Putin – vowed to deepen defense and security ties and expressed shared views on the war in Ukraine during a Wednesday meeting in Beijing, as geopolitical tensions around Russia’s war continue to rise. Lukashenko endorsed China’s […]
New Delhi CNN — Foreign ministers from the world’s biggest economies have convened in New Delhi, setting the stage for a grand test in Indian diplomacy as it attempts to navigate tensions over Russia’s brutal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. In the second high-level ministerial meeting under India’s Group of 20 (G20) presidency this year, […]
Hong Kong CNN — In the year since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Moscow has been hit by unprecedented Western sanctions and shut out of much of the global economy. But China, which has declared “no limits” to its friendship with its northern neighbor, has thrown the Kremlin an economic lifeline, tempering the impact of […]
CNN — Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has become the first leader of the country to take part in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in the event’s 45-year history. In other parts of the world, Mardi Gras is held the day before the Christian fasting season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, which […]
Abuja, Nigeria CNN — Nigerians are going to the polls for a crucial presidential vote that will see the country’s next leader elected. The hotly contested poll is being held simultaneously with voting for representatives for the country’s parliament. Polls opened in Nigeria on Saturday morning in what will be Africa’s largest democratic exercise. About […]
London CNN — Seven months since he announced his resignation as prime minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson’s shadow still looms large over the ruling Conservative party. Despite being forced from office in disgrace and presiding over a massive decline in support for both himself and his party, Johnson is still attempting to influence government policy. […]