* The United States this month convened a meeting of working-level experts from China, France, Russia and the United Kingdom to discuss nuclear weapons issues including strategic risk reduction, the State Department said.
* China is ready to work with France to advance balanced development of bilateral trade, expand two-way market access and seek greater mutual benefit, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here Thursday in a meeting with French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne.
* Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and visiting Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani agreed on Thursday to deepen bilateral relations.
* U.S. President Joe Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, is traveling to Denmark this weekend to participate in a meeting about Ukraine.
* Venezuela denounced the "negative impact" of sanctions on the development of Caribbean countries, an official said Thursday, calling for more support for climate-vulnerable countries in the region.
* Russia urged the International Atomic Energy Agency on Friday to ensure Ukraine does not shell the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, saying it was otherwise operating safely.
* Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer on Friday rejected a call by the European Commission for EU countries to contribute more cash to the bloc's shared coffers, arguing that extra money should instead be found by making savings from the current budget.
* Israel's national security minister on Friday urged tougher military action against Palestinian militants in the occupied West Bank and urged Israeli settlers to expand their presence there despite surging violence and international calls for a halt to new construction.
* A top Iranian commander said on Friday that any ship seeking to pass through the Strait of Hormuz must inform Iran of its name, nationality and cargo in Persian language, official news agency IRNA reported.
* Maritime nations including Denmark and the Marshall Islands are rallying support for a global carbon dioxide emissions levy on shipping, with talks at a critical stage ahead of a U.N. agency meeting next month that could back the measure.
* Russia is scheduled to conduct the first sea trials of its Poseidon unmanned underwater drone this summer, according to a Russian news outlet on Friday.
* Heathrow Airport security workers on Friday called off 31 days of strikesplanned for this summer, a relief for those travelling through Britain's busiest hub for their summer getaway.
* At least 350 Pakistanis were on an overloaded boat that capsized and sank in open seas off Greece last week, Pakistan's Interior Minister said on Friday, promising to arrest and prosecute the human smugglers responsible.
* Russian cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitry Petelin have successfully returned to the International Space Station (ISS) after completing a spacewalk of nearly seven hours, Russia's state space corporation Roscosmos said on Friday.
* Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos has approved the 5.768 trillion pesos (roughly 103.73 billion USD) proposed national budget for 2024, 9.5 percent higher than the budget for 2023, the Department of Budget and Management said on Friday.
* Singapore saw a decline in consumer prices in May primarily driven by decreases in food, retail, and private transportation inflation, according to a report jointly published by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Friday.
* Colombia's Congress approved raising the government's 2023 budget by some 16.9 trillion pesos ($4.1 billion) in overnight votes on Friday, with education and health to receive the biggest boosts to funding.
* Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe has emphasized the urgency of debt restructuring to avoid instability, said a statement from the President's Media Division (PMD) Friday.
* Nepali Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said on Friday that his government had prioritized the development of the digital economy and digital services to improve the service delivery to people.
* British banks agreed on Friday to give homeowners who miss mortgage payments a year of grace before foreclosing and to protect credit scores of borrowers who change loan terms, as the government sought to ease the strain of rising interest rates.
* Semeru volcano in the Indonesian province of East Java Island erupted early on Friday, prompting authorities to warn residents to stay away from the eruption area.
* Tropical Storm Bret continued its path through eastern Caribbean islands early Friday, striking the region with winds and heavy rain.
* A methane gas explosion in a disused South African mine killed at least 31 people last month believed to be from neighbouring Lesotho, South Africa's energy department said on Friday.
