New Delhi/ Kabul, Aug 20 (IANS) Continuing with its humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, India on Thursday delivered medicines and medical consumables to a government hospital in Kabul. Taking to X, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) posted: “Augmenting Afghanistan’s healthcare! Reaffirming its enduring health partnership with the friendly people of Afghanistan, India delivers medicines and medical consumables to a Government Hospital in Kabul.”This comes amid India’s sustained efforts to…

Seoul, Aug 20 (IANS) South Korea’s Opposition leader Jang Dong-hyeok on Thursday criticised President Lee Jae Myung’s remarks portraying the reduction of South Korea-US military exercises as a big decision by US President Donald Trump to promote peace on the Korean Peninsula, calling it “an unprecedented moral victory.” Jang, leader of the main opposition People Power Party, made the criticism at a party leadership meeting in Seoul in response to remarks Lee made in a post on his X account late …

Washington, Aug 20 (IANS) Leaders of major US technology, cryptocurrency and financial companies have backed President Donald Trump’s push for lighter regulation and clearer digital-asset rules, saying his policies were bringing investment and innovation back to the United States. Executives from Coinbase, Robinhood, Kraken, Chainlink Labs, Gemini and the Intercontinental Exchange joined Trump at the White House ahead of the first meeting of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Innovat…

Seoul, Aug 20 (IANS) North Korea is estimated to have around 80 to 120 nuclear weapons, Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back said on Thursday, offering a figure higher than US President Donald Trump’s recent claim of 57. Ahn made the remarks during a parliamentary session after Trump gave the number while speaking to reporters at the White House on Wednesday (US time), saying he would meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un later this year.Trump said that Pyongyang possesses 57 “very powerful” nuclea…

Washington, Aug 20 (IANS) Four Republican lawmakers have asked the Justice Department and the State Department to investigate California’s climate agreements with Chinese government-linked bodies, alleging that the state may have intruded on federal foreign policy powers. Senators Rick Scott, Mike Lee and Marsha Blackburn, along with Representative Young Kim, made the request in a letter to Attorney General Todd Blanche and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.The lawmakers asked for a formal inquir…

Canberra, Aug 20 (IANS) Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said on Thursday that Australia is “outraged” over Israel’s decision to clear military personnel of criminal wrongdoing in a 2024 airstrike that killed an Australian aid worker in Gaza. Australian Zomi Frankcom was one of seven people who were killed when the World Central Kitchen convoy they were travelling in to deliver food in Gaza was targeted by an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) airstrike on April 1, 2024.The IDF said on W…

Tokyo, Aug 20 (IANS) Black smoke was seen near the engine of an aircraft at Narita Airport near Tokyo on Thursday morning, causing the affected runway to be closed for inspection, a public broadcaster reported. According to public broadcaster NHK, at around 10:40 a.m. local time, the fire department received a report that something resembling black smoke could be seen coming from an aircraft engine at the airport.The report, citing police, said the aircraft was a Malaysia Airlines passenger plan…

Washington, Aug 20 (IANS) US Senator Mark Warner has demanded answers from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg over paid advertisements containing alleged child sexual abuse material, citing an earlier investigation that found similar advertisements running on Instagram in India.Warner, a Virginia Democrat, said Meta had allowed advertisements featuring child sexual abuse material, or CSAM, and non-consensual intimate images to appear across its platforms. He also questioned whether the company profited fr…

Washington, Aug 20 (IANS) As many as 583 companies have gone public in the United States since President Donald Trump’s inauguration, raising $208 billion as the administration moves to ease regulations governing public listings and cryptocurrency fundraising, the country’s top securities regulator has said. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Paul Atkins described the figures as evidence of a sharp revival in the American market for initial public offerings.”Since Inauguration Day, 583 …

Helsinki, Aug 20 (IANS) Finland plans to fence off parts of the African swine fever (ASF) restriction zone in its southeastern region, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Sari Essayah said, as confirmed infections among wild boars rose to 19. The exact area to be fenced has yet to be determined, Essayah said on Wednesday (local time), adding that the work would be carried out in the coming months as part of efforts to contain the outbreak.The Finnish Food Authority has established a restriction…