During a parliamentary address on Thursday, Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe reiterated that the debt restructuring discussions with India and China are “currently successful.” He said the talks were a critical step to getting the economy back on the right track.
Russia, China, and South Africa will conduct naval drills in the Indian Ocean off the coast of South Africa from 17 February to 27 February. The South African National Defense Force said that the aim of the exercise was “sharing operational skills and knowledge,” and that it would help “strengthen the already flourishing relations” between the three countries.
China’s top internet regulator, the Cyberspace Administration of China, launched a month-long clean-up campaign to crack down on “fake information” that spreads negative views about COVID-19 infections over the Chinese New Year. Increased travel during the festive season has sparked concerns of triggering another wave of COVID-19 infections.
On Thursday, the European Parliament called for a special international tribunal against Russia and its allies for “the crime of aggression against Ukraine,” with 472 in favour, 19 against, and 33 abstaining. In a statement, the Members of European Parliament said that creating the tribunal “would send a very clear signal to both Russian society and the international community that President Putin and the Russian leadership at large can be convicted for the crime of aggression in Ukraine.”
Former Russian President and Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday warned NATO that Russia’s defeat in Ukraine war might lead to a nuclear war. “Nuclear powers haven’t been defeated in major conflicts crucial for their destiny,” he asserted on the eve of a NATO Defence Ministers’ meeting to be held at Germany’s Ramstein Air Base on Friday.
Nationwide strikes struck major cities in France, including Paris, on Thursday, with at least 1.1 million people taking to the streets to march in protest of President Emmanuel Macron’s proposed changes to the pension system. French workers are highly perturbed by the plans, which include raising the standard retirement age from 62 to 64. Reportedly, over 38 people were detained during the marches, and French unions have announced a new round of protests starting 31 January.
On Thursday, German parliamentarians passed a motion recognising the 2014 ISIL-led massacre targeting the Yazidi community in Iraq and Syria as “genocide.” They condemned the attacks as “tyrannical injustice” that sought to “wipe out” the Yazidi community.
Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen accepted his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba’s invitation to visit the war-torn country during a phone call on Thursday. Cohen would be the first senior Israeli official to travel to Ukraine since the war began on 24 February. Additionally, Cohen condemned Russia’s use of Iranian drones to attack Ukraine and urged Kuleba to “join the fight” against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and “encourage” the EU to declare it a terrorist group.
UN agencies said on Thursday that around two million people in Lebanon — 1.29 million Lebanese citizens and 700,000 Syrian refugees — are currently “facing acute food insecurity” and the situation would “worsen” in the coming months. Lebanon is in the midst of an economic crisis, with prices of essential commodities like food, fuel, and medical items skyrocketing and the Lebanese pound crashing to historic lows.