live Iran’s Araghchi blames U.S. for Hormuz tensions, urges diplomacy
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said regional issues should be res...
The Kremlin on Tuesday rejected a proposed Christmas ceasefire in Ukraine, saying any truce would depend on reaching a broader peace agreement.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia was unwilling to participate in what it viewed as short-term or unviable arrangements, adding that the key issue was whether negotiations were moving towards a broader agreement.
“The question now is whether we, as President Donald Trump says, will reach a deal or not,” Peskov said. “If the Ukrainians seek to substitute moving towards a deal with momentary and non-viable solutions, then we are hardly ready to be a part of it.”
His remarks came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday that Kyiv supported the idea of a ceasefire during the Christmas period, particularly proposals aimed at halting strikes on energy infrastructure.
Peskov said Moscow opposed any truce that could give Ukraine time to regroup.
“We want peace. We don’t want a truce to give Ukraine a breathing space and prepare for a continuation of the war,” he said. “We want to stop this war, achieve our goals, secure our interests, and guarantee peace in Europe for the future.”
Peskov also said Russia had not yet seen details of proposed NATO-style security guarantees for Ukraine, which U.S. and European officials have said Washington is prepared to offer.
Separately, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz proposed that Russia consider a ceasefire over Christmas and the New Year. Zelenskyy said Ukraine and the United States supported the idea, adding that its implementation depended on Russia’s political will.
U.S. President Donald Trump has criticised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for continuing to target Russia's energy infrastructure, while Russian strikes on Kyiv overnight killed at least one person and damaged a metro station.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in Norway for talks about the Russia-Ukraine war. He is expected to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, who arrived in Oslo earlier. Witkoff will also meet European officials.
French President Emmanuel Macron has condemned the violence, looting and vandalism that erupted during cost-of-living protests across France. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu held crisis talks on Monday, calling for partial curfews and raising the possibility of a state of emergency.
An oil tanker caught fire after striking a naval mine in the southern part of the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said late Sunday.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said regional issues should be resolved through diplomacy and blamed the United States for insecurity and tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, speaking at a joint news conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in Norway for talks about the Russia-Ukraine war. He is expected to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, who arrived in Oslo earlier. Witkoff will also meet European officials.
Beijing says it deployed naval forces to monitor a U.S. warship near Sabina Shoal, while Taiwan reports a separate confrontation with a Chinese coast guard vessel near the Pratas Islands.
Tensions are mounting across Asia, with North Korea warning of war, China clashing with the U.S. and the Philippines, and protests gathering pace in Indonesia and India. Military threats, diplomatic disputes and political unrest are fuelling uncertainty across the region.
Canada’s oil-rich province of Alberta voted to remain part of the country in a non-binding referendum on Monday, 19 October, CBC News reports, delivering a much-needed victory for Prime Minister Mark Carney amid an ongoing trade war with the United States.
A Kenyan court has convicted cult leader Paul Mackenzie and 28 co-defendants of murder over the deaths of 191 people, including 190 children, in a case that shocked the world and exposed one of the deadliest cult-related tragedies in recent memory.
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