The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China announced that Chinese diplomatic officials embarked on their second European tour on March 2nd to mediate in the Ukraine war. Mao Ning, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, stated that this European tour includes vis
Sweden has officially become the 32nd member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on March 7th. NATO, established in 1949 by the United States (U.S.), Canada, France, and 12 other countries, is a military alliance that considers an attack on one nation as an invasion against the entire a
The Ministry of Commerce of China proposed strengthening graphite export regulations last October, which was implemented on December 1st, 2023. Graphite is a vital material for cathodes, electrodes from which a conventional current flows out, that affects the efficiency of lithium-ion batteries util
Norway declared on January 16th that all international adoptions would be halted for two years, pointing to several charges of illegalities. The Norwegian government explained, “The risk of document forgery is so great that we cannot be sure that the children’s legal security is safeguarded,” as the
An armed conflict has broken out between Israel and the Palestinian political and military organization Hamas around the Gaza Strip. This conflict can be seen as a rupture of longstanding tensions that have been brewing for 75 years since the First Arab-Israeli War in 1947. Fighting broke out on Oct
On October 30th, the Canadian government issued a ban on the Chinese messaging application WeChat on government- owned devices. Canadian authorities cited that, “The Chinese application WeChat poses an unacceptable level of risk to national security and private data protection,” and therefore decide
On September 10th, Joe Biden, the President of the United States (U.S.), visited Hanoi, Vietnam, and held a meeting with the paramount leader, Nguyen Phú Trong. Through this summit, the relationship between the two countries was elevated from a “comprehensive partnership” to a “comprehensive strateg
On September 13th, the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, visited the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. United States (U.S.) officials noted that there is a high possibility of an arms deal between the two countries. The U.S. is viewing the meeting as a final st
In August, former United States (U.S.) president Donald Trump, along with 18 defendants, were indicted on charges of attempting to overturn Georgia’s vote in the 2020 presidential election. This was already his fourth indictment, along with previous charges of trying to overturn election results, le
On August 8th, massive wildfires caused by dry winds swept across Maui, Hawaii, causing a significant number of casualties and property damage. The wildfires have left 114 fatalities, 1,300 missing people, and 4,500 homeless. This disaster has been recorded as the deadliest disaster in Hawaii and as
On July 12th, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) held a summit in Vilnius, Lithuania. This summit disclosed the prospect of Ukraine and NATO relations. First, NATO released a superficially positive joint statement: “We reaffirm the commitment we made at the 2008 Summit in Bucharest that U
On July 13th, the negotiation between the Screen Actors Guild- American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) fell through. This conflict caused about 160,000 actors to join the strike led by the Writers Guild of Am
Scientists have been voicing their concerns about the rapid temperature rise across oceans’ surfaces. They warn that a record-breaking El Niño is projected to engulf the Pacific Ocean. El Niño is a phenomenon where the ocean warms up around the South American coast but cools down in the Western Paci
With a year and a half left until the 2024 United States (U.S.) Presidential Election, its matchup is forming slowly, with multiple politicians announcing their bids. On April 25th, current U.S. President Joe Biden announced his reelection campaign, along with Vice President Kamala Harris. However,
The Biden administration has approved the Willow Project despite strong disagreements from environmental organizations and Democratic Party members. The Willow Project is an oil development project located within the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, pursued by a hydrocarbon company ConocoPhilli
On March 22nd, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Putin declared to change the United States (U.S.)- centered unipolar system. From China’s perspective, the key phrases of this summit were “comprehensive strategic partnership” and “building international relations.” President Xi eval
Concerns have risen that the earthquake in Türkiye on February 6th will deepen the country’s economic downturn. With a magnitude of 7.8, the quake affected most of the country, causing more than 50,000 deaths and leaving more than 200 homeless. The damage has led to a shortage of human resources, wh
Concerns regarding the infrastructure industry of the United States (U.S.) grow as President Joe Biden’s Buy American Act falls into crisis. The Buy American Act is an initiative that requires a certain percentage of raw construction materials to be American-made, which was strengthened in 2021 due
U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime minister Fumio Kishida held the U.S.-Japan summit on January 13th at the White House. The joint statement announced that the meeting was mainly concerned with the issues surrounding North and South Korea, as well as the Ukraine War, China, Taiwan, and the
On January 11th, Bloomberg News reported that Apple decided to customize more components to lessen dependency on technical partners such as Samsung and LG. According to the report, Apple plans to produce its own Apple Watch Ultra display by the end of 2024. The company is expected to replace the dis