White House denies $1 billion fee to join Trump peace board
The Trump administration has denied a report that countries would be required to pay $1bn to join a proposed U.S.-backed peace initiative, after Bloom...
The first container ship to operate on the China-Europe Arctic express route has arrived in Poland, marking a milestone in commercial shipping through the Arctic’s Northeast Passage.
The vessel, Istanbul Bridge, reached the Port of Gdansk in northern Poland on Sunday after a 26-day journey from the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in China’s Zhejiang Province, according to China’s state-run Xinhua news agency.
Carrying around 4,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of cargo, the ship made stops in the UK and Germany before arriving in Poland. Its next destination will be the Netherlands.
The new China-Europe Arctic Express Route travels directly through the Arctic’s Northeast Passage, significantly reducing shipping time compared with traditional sea routes — which take around 40 days via the Suez Canal and about 50 days via the Cape of Good Hope.
The Istanbul Bridge reached its first European stop, Felixstowe in the UK, within 20 days — a duration comparable to or even faster than the China-Europe freight train, which takes roughly 25 days.
Li Xiaobin, chief operating officer of route operator Sea Legend Line Limited, said the Arctic route offers stable conditions for cargo sensitive to temperature and delivery times.
“The low temperatures help preserve certain high-tech components,” Li noted.
Sea Legend Line plans to introduce regular summer voyages on the Arctic route by 2026 and aims to expand its express service network to Eastern Europe during the winter months when the passage is closed to navigation.
The Turkish Defence Ministry has voiced its support for recent military operations by Syrian government forces against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which enjoy the support of the United States.
Tens of thousands of users were left unable to access Elon Musk’s social media platform X on Friday, with outages reported across multiple countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.
Armenia has reaffirmed that it has no intention of taking any actions directed against Iran, with senior officials stressing that relations with Tehran remain friendly and constructive.
Russian President Vladimir Putin held separate calls with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on 16 January, offering Russia’s help to mediate tensions and promote dialogue in the Middle East.
The Kremlin has welcomed recent signals from several major European capitals suggesting a renewed openness to dialogue with Moscow, calling the shift a “positive evolution” in Europe’s stance towards Russia.
The Trump administration has denied a report that countries would be required to pay $1bn to join a proposed U.S.-backed peace initiative, after Bloomberg News said a draft charter set out a membership fee.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for 18 January, covering the latest developments you need to know.
U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened a sweeping new round of tariffs on several European allies unless the United States is allowed to buy Greenland, escalating a diplomatic row over the Danish Arctic territory.
Leaders from several countries have received invitations to join a so-called U.S.-led ‘Board of Peace’, an initiative that would initially aim to end the conflict in Gaza before expanding to address other global disputes, diplomats said on Saturday.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Saturday (17 January) that concerns over security in Greenland should be addressed within the framework of NATO, describing a ground military intervention as highly unlikely.
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