North Korea will send a delegation to the Munich Security Conference for the first time in the 56-year history of the top diplomatic gathering, organizers said Thursday. An MSC spokesperson confirmed that North Korean vice foreign minister Kim Son-gyong would attend next month's event. The announcement comes a month after Pyongyang declared it was abandoning moratoriums on nuclear and intercont...

BEIJING (AFP) -- The Chinese city at the heart of a deadly virus outbreak is under effective quarantine, with outward flights and trains suspended, subways halted and large public events cancelled as doctors in full-body protective suits treat patients. The coronavirus has spread across China and beyond, with 17 people killed and more than 500 infected in an outbreak that started in Wuhan -- a c...

NEW YORK (AFP) -- Boeing on Tuesday officially pushed back the timeframe for the 737 MAX to return to the skies, sending shares plunging and overshadowing an earlier announcement of a first flight of the delayed 777X plane. Boeing said it is now targeting the return of the grounded MAX "during mid-2020," the latest delay in the schedule for the troubled jet, which has been grounded since March f...

It is only the third time a US president has endured an impeachment trial, after Bill Clinton in 1999 and Andrew Johnson in 1868. Like his two predecessors, Trump looks almost certain to be acquitted by the Senate Republican majority in a trial that could be as short as two weeks. Showing some compromise, McConnell's initial draft was modified at the last minute, allowing 24 hours of arguments ...

WASHINGTON/BEIJING (AFP) -- The United States on Tuesday announced its first case of a new virus that has claimed six lives in China and sickened hundreds, joining countries around the world in ramping up measures to block its spread. The man, a US resident in his 30s who lives near Seattle, is in good condition, according to federal and state officials, and approached authorities himself after ...

GENEVA (AFP) -- Pyongyang on Tuesday warned that it could seek a "new path" and accelerate its weapons programme, after Washington imposed fresh sanctions on North Korean companies amid stalled nuclear talks. North Korean representative Ju Yong-chol told the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva that his country's efforts to improve relations with Washington had been met with hostility. "Although...

BEIJING (AFP) -- Asian countries on Tuesday ramped up measures to block the spread of a new virus as the death toll in China rose to six and the number of cases jumped to almost 300, raising concerns in the middle of a major holiday travel rush. Nations across the Asia-Pacific region stepped up checks of passengers at airports to detect the SARS-like coronavirus, which first emerged in the centr...

DAVOS (AFP) -- US President Donald Trump branded his impeachment trial a "hoax" in the Swiss resort of Davos on Tuesday, hours before senators were to start debating a push to remove him from office. Asked by reporters why he was in Davos, not back in Washington, Trump said: "We're meeting with world leaders, the most important people in the world and we're bringing back tremendous business." ...

PARIS -- Presidents Emmanuel Macron and Donald Trump have agreed to extend negotiations on a dispute over a French tax on digital giants to the end of the year, postponing Washington's threat of sanctions against Paris, French officials said Tuesday. French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, speaking before a Brussels meeting with EU counterparts, said: "Macron and Trump had a very constructive di...

LONDON (AFP) -- Britain's Prince Harry has left the UK to rejoin his wife Meghan and son Archie in Canada, British media reported, as the couple start a new life after their shock exit from the royal fold. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are bowing out entirely from representing the British monarchy, in a crisis that has shaken the centuries-old institution. The prince boarded an evening flight ...

In contrast to the stunning victory for "Parasite", the four Oscars acting favorites all cemented their frontrunner statuses by piling on further trophies. Joaquin Phoenix won best actor for "Joker", a dark origin story of the Batman villain, adding to his Golden Globe win. He said he was "standing here on the shoulders of my favorite actor Heath Ledger," who posthumously won an Oscar playing t...

"It is difficult for people to go. We will try to fly drones to help find something," Gurung said. Helicopters were sent out on Saturday to rescue about 200 people stranded around Annapurna and other nearby mountains after the incident. Guesthouses and the trekking route were blanketed in a thick layer of snow. "The snow was very deep and it took us more than double the time to dig through and...

DUBAI (AFP) -- More than 100 people were killed and dozens wounded in a missile and drone attack blamed on Huthi rebels in central Yemen, officials said Sunday. Saturday's strike follows months of relative calm in the war between the Iran-backed Huthis and Yemen's internationally recognised government, which is supported by a Saudi-led military coalition. The Huthis attacked a mosque in a milit...

"It has been our privilege to serve you, and we will continue to lead a life of service." "I will always have the utmost respect for my grandmother, my commander in chief, and I am incredibly grateful to her and the rest of my family, for the support they have shown Meghan and I over the last few months." He also hinted at some trepidation at starting a new life away from his royal home. He and...

BEIJING (AFP) -- A mysterious SARS-like virus has spread around China -- including to Beijing -- authorities said Monday, fuelling fears of a major outbreak as millions begin travelling for the Lunar New Year in humanity's biggest migration. The new coronavirus strain, first discovered in the central city of Wuhan, has caused alarm because of its connection to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, ...