live U.S. President Trump asks NATO allies for urgent support in Hormuz, diplomats say - Thursday 9 April
Iran suggested it would be "unreasonable" to proceed with talks to forge a permanent peace d...
China on Wednesday criticised U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), calling it inconsistent with the responsibilities of a major power.
“This is not what a major country should do,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a news conference in Beijing when asked about Washington’s move, which will take effect on 31 December, 2026.
"This is the third time the U.S. has withdrawn from UNESCO. This is not the behaviour of a responsible big country," added Guo.
Guo expressed “firm” support for UNESCO, saying many countries had “regretted” the U.S. decision, which he noted came after Washington had “not paid arrears” to the United Nations agency for a “long time.”
He urged countries to “reaffirm their commitment to multilateralism,” citing the UN’s 80th anniversary.
Washington said that continued involvement was not in the U.S. national interest.
"UNESCO works to advance divisive social and cultural causes and maintains an outsized focus on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, a globalist, ideological agenda for international development at odds with our America First foreign policy," State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said in a statement.
Guo, however, said the purpose of UNESCO is to advance international cooperation in education, science, and culture and uphold peace and common development.
China and Russia vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution on Tuesday aimed at coordinating defensive efforts to protect commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, leaving no agreed international framework for securing the vital route.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah said it had stopped firing on northern Israel and Israeli forces on Wednesday as part of a two-week ceasefire in the Middle East brokered between the United States and Iran. However, a Hezbollah lawmaker warned that the pause could collapse if Tel Aviv does not adhere to it.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Iran and the United States, along with their allies, have agreed to an immediate two-week ceasefire covering all areas, but Israel says the deal excludes Lebanon. Tel Aviv says the U.S. is committed to achieving shared goals in upcoming negotiations.
Iran suggested it would be "unreasonable" to proceed with talks to forge a permanent peace deal with the U.S. after Israel pounded Lebanon with its heaviest strikes yet on Wednesday, killing hundreds of people. The warning came from Iran's lead negotiator, parliament speaker Mohammed Bager Qalibaf.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he had agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran, less than two hours before his deadline for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face U.S. attacks on its civilian infrastructure.
Three Russian submarines were detected near British waters, the UK Defence Secretary, John Healey MP, announced on Thursday (9 April). Speaking at a press briefing in Downing Street, he said an attack submarine and two specialist vessels were being monitored by the Ministry of Defence.
More than a million Sudanese refugees now face drastic cuts to life-saving aid, including food and water, after major funding shortfalls have left humanitarian agencies struggling to cope.
Russia will see revenue from its biggest single oil tax double to $9 billion in April, driven by the oil and gas crisis triggered by the U.S. and Israeli attack on Iran, Reuters calculations showed on Thursday.
At least four people died after a small dinghy carrying migrants to Britain sank in the English Channel, French authorities announced on Thursday.
A federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday declined to block the Pentagon’s national security blacklisting of Anthropic for now, handing a win to the Trump administration after a separate appeals court reached the opposite conclusion.
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