* While assuming the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council for February, China will work on the priorities of reaffirming member states' commitment to multilateralism and enhancing global governance, Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, said Monday.
* U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States will take ownership of the Gaza Strip and redevelop it after Palestinians are relocated elsewhere.
* Belgium's new Prime Minister Bart De Wever outlined his government's priorities in parliament on Tuesday, pledging austerity measures, stricter migration controls, and a security overhaul, including increased defense spending and police reforms.
* The Norwegian Labour party is governing alone for the first time in 25 years, with the country's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store presenting his new government on Tuesday.
* Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno has reappointed Allamaye Halina as the country's prime minister. The appointment came shortly after Halina submitted the cabinet's resignation on Tuesday evening to pave the way for a new government.
* Thailand suspended power supply to five areas along the border with Myanmar on Wednesday morning as part of its effort to combat illegal operations, Deputy Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said.
* European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday that the European Union (EU) is prepared for tough negotiations with the United States (U.S.) to safeguard its economic interests.
* U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order withdrawing the United States from the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
* U.S. President Donald Trump took an executive action Tuesday to restore the so-called "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran aimed at preventing the Islamic Republic from obtaining nuclear weapon.
* Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed on Tuesday that 10,000 National Guard troops have begun deployment along the 3,200-km border with the United States.
* China has decided to add two U.S. firms, namely PVH Corp. and Illumina, Inc., to the country's unreliable entity list.
* China's Ministry of Commerce will extend anti-dumping duties levied on potato starch imported from the European Union (EU) for another five years, starting Thursday.
* Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Tuesday that Poland will not implement the European Union's (EU) Migration Pact or accept any provisions that would force the country to take in relocated migrants from other EU countries.
* Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Tuesday downplayed the impact of Ecuador's plan to impose a 27-percent tariff on Mexican goods, noting that trade between the two countries constitutes only a small portion of Mexico's exports.
* At least 5,000 Palestinian families have been forcibly displaced from Jenin and Tulkarm refugee camps in northern West Bank over the past two weeks, the Palestinian Authority said in a statement on Tuesday after a meeting.
* Hamas said on Tuesday that talks on the second phase of a Gaza ceasefire deal with Israel have begun, focusing on shelter, relief, and reconstruction in the devastated Palestinian enclave.
* Escalating hostilities in Sudan's North Darfur and South Kordofan states are increasing civilian casualties and displacements, causing extreme concern, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
* The school shooting in central Sweden's Orebro is the worst mass shooting in the country's history, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said at a press conference late Tuesday. Swedish police confirmed on Tuesday evening that around ten people were killed in the shooting, which took place at noon at Risbergska Skolan, an education center, in Orebro.
* The European Commission on Tuesday called for faster progress across the European Union (EU) to protect waters and better manage flood risks. According to the latest report on the state of water in the EU, only 39.5 percent of EU surface water bodies have good ecological status while only 26.8 percent of waters are achieving good chemical status.
* Turkey said Tuesday that it will accept 15 Palestinian prisoners released by Israel under the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
* Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani reaffirmed Tuesday Qatar's unwavering support for Lebanon.
* Iran's army launched Tuesday a large-scale air defense drill in the country's southwestern regions, according to a press release published on the army's public relations website.
* Egypt signed two deals worth 1.6 billion USD with the Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank Group (IsDB) to finance trade and support private sector growth in the country, the Egyptian Ministry of International Cooperation said Tuesday.
* Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa discussed on Tuesday the implementation of the Gaza ceasefire agreement over the phone, the Egyptian presidency said in a statement.
* The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) announced on Tuesday the formation of an advisory committee to resolve issues hindering the holding of general elections in the country.
* The International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Tuesday said that 592 migrants were intercepted off the coast of Libya in the past week.
* Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced a billion-dollar funding deal to cut waiting times at the country's public hospitals. Albanese and Minister for Health Mark Butler on Wednesday said that the federal government has reached a deal with all eight states and territories to increase funding for the public healthcare system in 2025-26.
* The number of welfare applications in Japan reached 22,320 in November 2024, marking a 1.6 percent increase from the same month the previous year and the highest for November in the past decade, according to data released by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
* The Lao government is targeting a 4.3 percent growth in agriculture for 2025, aiming to increase the sector's contribution to 22.4 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP).
* Thailand's cabinet on Tuesday approved the second phase of the high-speed rail project that will connect the Southeast Asian country with China through Laos, with completion expected in 2030.
* Russia's gross domestic product (GDP) rose by 4 percent in 2024 over the year before, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said on Tuesday during a government meeting on economic issues. The prime minister said this growth was largely driven by the manufacturing sector.
* Cambodia attracted fixed-asset investment of 748 million USD in January 2025, up 300 percent from 187 million dollars year on year, the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) said in a news release on Wednesday.
* Indonesia recorded a gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 5.02 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024, which brought the Southeast Asian country to post a 5.03 percent economic growth throughout last year, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) announced on Wednesday.
* Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad achieved a profit from operations of 5.1 billion ringgit (1.15 billion USD) in 2024, driven by disciplined monetization strategies, steady dividend income and fair value gains from global public equities.
* Slovenia's exports of goods to non-European Union (EU) countries jumped by 25 percent in 2024, while imports from those countries rose by 47 percent, the country's Statistical Office said Tuesday.
* Bangladesh's inflation slowed to 9.94 percent in January, the first time the rate has dropped to single digits since September last year, according to the latest data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).
* An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.1 jolted Halmahera, Indonesia at 03:12:30 GMT on Wednesday, the GFZ German Research Center for Geosciences said. The epicenter, with a depth of 111.0 km, was initially determined to be at 1.62 degrees north latitude and 127.21 degrees east longitude.
* China's meteorological authority issued a blue alert for a cold wave on Wednesday. Temperatures will plunge in most parts of the country over the next few days.
* Indonesia's resort island of Bali has experienced extreme heat, with temperatures reaching up to 36 degrees Celsius in some areas over the past two days, according to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) Regional Bali on Wednesday.
