World events 2 in a concentrated form, understandable
World events 2.
Two natural disasters that killed at least 9,000 people days apart in North Africa have foreign powers racing to offer aid. Whether it arrives depends largely on politics.
To see important ads, turn off your ad blocker! Article continued below:As Morocco makes last-ditch rescue efforts after its most powerful earthquake in a century and eastern Libya counts the dead from flooding that destroyed entire neighborhoods, their decisions on what assistance to accept is being shaped by domestic affairs and international diplomacy.
Russian President Vladimir Putin accepted an invitation from Kim Jong Un to visit North Korea after the two held their first summit in four years, which Washington believed centered on Pyongyang sending arms to help Moscow attack Ukraine. The official Korean Central News agency called the talks between Kim and Putin “an epoch-making event.”
World events 2, US-Iran prisoner.
A US-Iran prisoner exchange could happen as soon as next week under an agreement that’s seen as a first step toward fresh talks on Tehran’s nuclear program. The deal, which also saw the US allow Iran to access $6 billion in frozen funds, has opened President Joe Biden up to criticism that he’s encouraging more hostage taking.
Under pressure from Putin to repatriate their wealth and squeezed by international sanctions since the invasion of Ukraine, Russian billionaires have pulled assets worth $50 billion from Europe. The shift breaks with a decades-old practice in which the rich take advantage of investor-friendly legal systems and the chance to earn dividends in foreign currencies.
The US and Bahrain upgraded their defense relationship with a new pact that could become a model for Washington’s commitments to other Middle East allies. The agreement comes as the Biden administration works with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on a deal that would see Saudi Arabia recognize Israel in exchange for firm US security pledges.
World events 2.
As Turkey and the EU engage in a new effort to revive stalled talks over the country’s membership of the bloc, Ankara criticized the European Parliament’s insistence on cooperation in enforcing sanctions against Russia.
Egypt is considering holding presidential elections before the end of the year, sources say, an earlier-than-expected date as it grapples with its worst economic crisis in years.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is poised to open a Hindu temple where a centuries-old mosque once stood, achieving a pledge made by his nationalist party in 1990 that may help further energize his base ahead of elections next year.
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The death toll in the Libyan port city of Derna is likely to reach 20,000, the city’s mayor said.