Belgrade Trump Tower project scrapped amidst legal probe and protests
Plans for a $500 million Trump Tower in Belgrade have been cancelled after protests and a legal investigation. The project, backed by Jared Kushner, f...
The World Bank has approved a $100 million concessional loan to Uzbekistan to help integrate renewable energy into power grids and enhance electricity reliability in key regions. The national grid operator will contribute an additional $50 million to the five-year program.
The Executive Board of the World Bank has approved a concessional loan of $100 million to support Uzbekistan in implementing a major program focused on integrating renewable energy into the country’s distribution networks and improving power reliability in priority regions.
Uzbekistan’s national power distributor, Regional Electric Power Networks, will contribute an additional $50 million from its own funds, bringing the total investment to $150 million over the next five years.
The program aims to modernize and expand critical distribution infrastructure to facilitate the incorporation of renewable energy sources and ensure consistent electricity supply, particularly in Karakalpakstan and Surkhandarya region.
Key components of the program include:
- Construction and modernization of 6,000 kilometers of low-voltage power lines
- Replacement and installation of 1,200 distribution transformers with a total capacity of 250 MVA
- Installation of 150,000 smart meters to reduce commercial losses in RES networks
- Deployment of 4,000 data concentrators to automate and digitize the distribution system, transforming it into a modern and efficient network
By 2029, the program is expected to deliver significant results:
- Raise customer satisfaction with RES services to 90%
- Expand the network’s capacity to accept up to 50 MW of renewable energy generated by households and small to medium enterprises
- Cut greenhouse gas emissions by up to 450,000 tons of CO₂ annually
- Increase the proportion of women in technical and managerial roles at JSC RES from 9% in 2025 to 14%.
At least 37 people have been killed in flash floods triggered by torrential rain in Morocco's Atlantic coastal province of Safi, Moroccan authorities said on Monday (15 December).
Authorities discovered the lifeless bodies of renowned filmmaker Rob Reiner, aged 78, and his wife, Michele Reiner, 68, in their upscale Brentwood home in Los Angeles on Sunday. The police investigation has labeled the incident an apparent homicide.
Cambodia must be the first to declare a ceasefire in the ongoing border conflict, Thailand said on Tuesday (16 December), as fighting continued despite earlier claims that hostilities would stop and at least 52 people have been killed on both sides.
Schools across Cambodia and Thailand were forced to close on Monday (15 December) as border clashes between the two countries escalated, with the death toll reaching at least 40 and hundreds of thousands of people displaced, according to officials and local media.
U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held two rounds of high-stakes talks in Berlin, Germany on 14-15 December. Ukraine’s chief negotiator, Rustem Umerov, posted on X that discussions with the U.S. envoy have been "constructive and productive".
Azerbaijan and the United Arab Emirates look set to deepen their relationship. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev is visiting the UAE at the invitation of President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Wednesday (17 December).
Across Iraq’s wheat belt, farmers are turning away from traditional river-fed irrigation as the Tigris and Euphrates shrink, replacing canals with wells, sprinklers and storage basins.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Moscow for talks with Russian officials following a one-day visit to Minsk on Monday 15 December ,where he met with Belarusian counterpart Maxim Ryzhenov.
Kazakhstan is considering deeper involvement in major gas projects in Turkmenistan, signalling interest in both upstream development and cross-border export infrastructure as the region searches for new energy routes and partnerships.
Applications are now open for the WUF13 Urban Expo. Interested exhibitors have until 31 March 2026 to secure a place at one of the world’s leading platforms for urban innovation.
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