BRATISLAVA, Slovakia — A pro-western career diplomat defeated a close ally of Slovakia’s populist Prime Minister Robert Fico in the first round of the presidential election Sunday to set up a runoff between the two to decide who will succeed Zuzana Čaputová, the country’s first female president. Former Foreign Minister Ivan Korčok had 42.13% of … Read more
U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan pressed Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during talks in Thailand to use China’s influence with Iran to ease tensions in the Middle East. The officials also agreed to work toward arranging a call between President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The meetings Friday and Saturday in Bangkok, … Read more
JERUSALEM — Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister says the kingdom will not normalize relations with Israel or contribute to Gaza’s reconstruction without a credible pathway to a Palestinian state. Prince Faisal bin Farhan’s remarks in an interview with CNN broadcast late Sunday were some of the most direct yet from Saudi officials. It puts them at … Read more
MIAMI — A former career American diplomat was charged Monday with serving as a secret agent for communist Cuba going back decades in what prosecutors portrayed as one of the most brazen and long-running betrayals in the history of the U.S. foreign service. Court papers alleged that Manuel Rocha engaged in “clandestine activity” on Cuba’s … Read more
BARCELONA, Spain — BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said Sunday he hopes a meeting of Mediterranean officials will help bridge a gap between Arab and European countries in calling for a humanitarian pause in Gaza to become a permanent cease-fire. The fragile pause in hostilities between Israel and the Hamas militant … Read more
Israeli troops tightened their encirclement of Gaza City on Friday as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel to press for a humanitarian “pause” in the fighting with Hamas and for more aid to be allowed into besieged Gaza. Tensions continued to escalate along the northern border with Lebanon ahead of a speech … Read more
Comment on this storyCommentAdd to your saved storiesSave Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi capped two days in Washington on Friday with an hour-long visit with President Biden at the White House, part of an ongoing effort to thaw relations between the two superpowers after a year of anger and distrust from both sides. In meetings, … Read more
WASHINGTON — In the midst of two active and potentially world-changing conflicts in the Middle East and Europe, the U.S. is hoping to find at least a small measure of common ground with China as China’s top diplomat visits Washington this week. Over three days of meetings that begin Thursday, top Biden administration officials, including … Read more
Comment on this storyCommentAdd to your saved storiesSave Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit Washington this week, the State Department said Monday, the highest-level visit by a Chinese official since tensions spiked early this year after a Chinese spy balloon floated across American airspace. The three days of meetings, starting Thursday, are the latest … Read more
MANILA, Philippines — A senior Filipino diplomat known for his past expletive-laced tirade against China joined a coast guard trip to the disputed South China Sea last week and saw Beijing’s ships block and nearly collide with Philippine vessels, including one he was on. Teodoro Locsin Jr. was on one of two Philippine coast guard … Read more