WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States was monitoring what he described as a rise in human rights abuses in India by some officials, in a rare direct rebuke by Washington of the Asian nation’s rights record.

Greece says it will accelerate plans to exploit offshore natural gas deposits, describing a return to reliance on fossil fuels as a temporary necessity due to the disruption caused by the war in Ukraine.

TAIPEI – Taiwan’s military released a handbook on civil defence for the first time on Tuesday, giving citizens survival guidance in a war scenario as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine focuses attention on how the island should respond to China’s pressure.

Seoul says North Korea is destroying a South Korean-owned golf course at a scenic mountain resort in the second confirmed case of South Korean assets being eliminated in the area that was once a symbol of inter-Korean cooperation.

BRUSSELS – Hungary and Austria questioned an EU decision to blacklist two Russian oligarchs but eventually accepted the move after pressure from other governments, European Union diplomats and officials said.

Russia has made a “massive strategic blunder” as Finland and Sweden look poised to join NATO as early as the summer, The Times reported on Monday, citing officials.

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden will meet virtually with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, the White House said, at a time when the United States has made clear it does not want to see an uptick in Russian energy imports by India.

Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo has denied that his administration is attempting to delay the 2024 presidential elections after senior politicians including his close ally supported the idea of extending his stay in office beyond the two-term legal mandate.

LONDON – Dozens of international scientists have arrived each year since 2000 at Russia’s remote Northeast Science Station on the Kolyma River in Siberia to study climate change in the Arctic environment.

Russian ally Serbia has taken delivery of a sophisticated Chinese anti-aircraft system in a semi-secret operation this weekend, amid Western concerns that an arms buildup in the Balkans at the time of the war in Ukraine could threaten the fragile peace in the region.