* Senior military officer Horta Inta-A was sworn in on Thursday as Guinea-Bissau's transitional president for a one-year term, a day after the armed forces announced they had fully taken control of state power.
* Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko expressed unprecedented optimism that the Ukraine conflict is nearing its end, during the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit in Bishkek on Thursday, said his press service.
* Ukraine will not amend its Constitution as part of any potential peace deal, Interfax-Ukraine reported Wednesday, citing a member of the Ukrainian delegation involved in talks with the United States, other partners and Russia.
* German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Wednesday cautioned that Europe must remain a primary actor in negotiations concerning the Ukraine crisis, pledging Germany's continued support. During a speech at the lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, Merz welcomed the U.S. engagement in resolving the conflict.
* The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned the Polish ambassador on Tuesday to deliver a diplomatic note revoking permission for the operation of Poland's Consulate General in Irkutsk, eastern Siberia, effective Dec. 30, 2025.
* Poland has chosen Sweden to supply three new submarines to renew its navy, Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said Wednesday. According to Polish media, bidders from six countries, including Sweden, France, Italy, Germany, the Republic of Korea and Spain, were competing for the contract.
* South Africa on Wednesday criticized U.S. President Donald Trump's intention to block the country from attending the Group of 20 (G20) summit in Miami, Florida, next year. Trump said earlier that he will not invite South Africa to attend next year's G20 summit and will halt all U.S. aid to the country.
* The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said Wednesday it has halted all immigration processing related to Afghan nationals indefinitely, after two U.S. National Guard soldiers were shot and critically wounded near the White House earlier in the day.
* At least 25 Palestinians were injured and 119 others detained in the northern West Bank city of Tubas as an Israeli military operation entered its second day, Palestinian officials said on Thursday.
* Turkish defense companies have signed contracts worth 6.5 billion USD to strengthen the country's integrated air defense system known as "Steel Dome," the Presidency of Defence Industries (SSB) said Wednesday.
* The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has pledged 1 billion USD to support electricity and energy projects across war-ravaged Yemen, according to a report by the state-run Saba news agency on Wednesday.
* The Australian government on Thursday announced a new program that will support Pacific nations to manage increasing rates of HIV infections. Under the 48 million Australian dollar (31.3 million USD) program, Australia will provide funding to assist Pacific governments to contain the spread of HIV.
* China has built more than 7,000 advanced smart factories and become the world's largest intelligent manufacturing application base, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) announced on Thursday.
* The Canadian government on Wednesday announced some restrictive trade measures and domestic incentives to ensure its own steel producers better access to the domestic market.
* The Asian Development Bank (ADB) announced on Thursday that it has approved a 77-million-U.S.-dollar loan to promote ecotourism and natural farming in the Indian state of Meghalaya, creating sustainable livelihoods and strengthening environmental resilience.
* A Soyuz-2.1a carrier rocket was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Thursday, sending the Soyuz MS-28 spacecraft with two Russian cosmonauts and one U.S. astronaut into near-Earth orbit.
* Tropical Storm Koto is expected to influence weather conditions across Brunei, bringing more frequent showers and thundershowers that may at times be accompanied by gusty winds, according to the Brunei Meteorological Department on Wednesday. The active weather pattern is forecast to persist until Sunday, the department said.
* 29 people have been killed after flash floods and landslides struck multiple regencies and cities across Indonesia's North Sumatra province, a local official said on Thursday.
* The death toll in Thailand's Songkhla province has risen to 55 following severe flooding in the southern region, authorities said on Thursday, warning the number is expected to rise as recovery operations continue.
* Sri Lanka's Department of Meteorology on Thursday issued a red alert for both land and surrounding sea areas as the deep depression that had formed near the Sri Lankan coast in the Bay of Bengal has intensified into a cyclone, now named "Ditwah."
* Bird flu has been detected on a poultry farm near Kleve in Germany, a border town adjacent to the Netherlands, the Dutch government confirmed late Wednesday. On the same day, three additional Dutch poultry farms and a petting zoo near the German border also reported bird flu cases.
* South Africa's Department of Agriculture has announced a comprehensive strategy to vaccinate its entire livestock to combat one of the most severe outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) the country has faced in decades.
* Namibia's Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water, and Land Reform has issued a public alert following the confirmation of Rift Valley fever in neighboring South Africa.
