WORLD

China ramped up its stockpiling of crude last year, with imports beating the previous annual record, reached in 2020, as fuel demand bounced back after Covid-19 restrictions were lifted, Chinese customs data released on Friday showed. The country’s oil imports surged by 11% year-on-year to 11.28 million barrels per day …

The security agreement recently concluded between Kiev and London is “bilateral” and will guarantee Ukraine’s military support to the UK if Russia were to attack the country, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmygal has said. Shmygal was referring to the security cooperation agreement that British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak signed with …

So, Gonzalo Lira is dead. As he warned in his last video message before being disappeared (this time, as it turned out, forever) by the Ukrainian regime, his political journalism has cost him his life. A successful social media commentator and American citizen, Lira died while incarcerated by Ukraine’s repression …

Lai Ching-te of Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has been elected as the self-governing island’s new leader following Saturday’s presidential election. Lai, who entered the election as Taiwan’s vice president, claimed victory after the candidate representing the island’s main opposition party, Hou Yu-ih, conceded defeat. The DPP, which was …

The Chinese military has warned that it would “crush” any attempt by Taiwan to formally declare independence, saying that nothing would stop reunification with the island – including US arms sales. During a press briefing on Friday – less than one day before Taiwan’s presidential election – military spokesman Zhang …

Chilean-American blogger Gonzalo Lira has died in a Ukrainian prison, his family said on Friday.  Lira, 55 at the time of his death, lived in Kharkov and blogged as ‘CoachRedPill,’ but switched to YouTube commentary after the conflict with Russia escalated in February 2022. He was arrested by the Security Service …

The overnight airstrikes conducted by the US and its allies against targets in Yemen were illegal, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Friday. The attacks on dozens of targets in Yemen were conducted by the US and the UK with support from a handful of other nations, according to …

The Republican-led effort to impeach US President Joe Biden should include an indictment for facilitating corruption in Kiev, former Ukrainian MP Andrey Derkach said in an interview published on Wednesday.  The ongoing impeachment inquiry against Biden, dismissed by US Democrats as a partisan publicity stunt, is looking into the president’s …

A Canadian-funded, US-Norwegian air-defense system intended for Ukraine has yet to materialize – one year after it was pledged, CTV News television network reported this week. The Ukrainian military stated this week that the country was experiencing a shortage of anti-aircraft systems and munitions. It was therefore counting on foreign …

Russia has shown true resilience by not bowing to foreign pressure, President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday. He stated that Russia is a “self-sufficient country,” whose economy is growing despite the sanctions, while EU member states are living through “difficult times.”  The president made his remarks during a meeting with …