International

• Tuesday, March 13th 2018 - 06:31 UTC

  Queen Elizabeth celebrates “diversity” in Commonwealth Day message

  

  Queen Elizabeth II has praised the “Commonwealth connection” that allows people from different nations to bond and celebrate “diversity”, in her Commonwealth Day message. London on Monday hosted a gathering of leaders from the 53 member nations, with the Queen's Commonwealth Day message featuring in a service at Westminster Abbey.

• Monday, March 12th 2018 - 09:47 UTC

  UK calls for a free and independent media at UN Human Rights Council

  

  This UK statement was delivered at the 37th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, Geneva during the General Debate on Item 3: Freedom of the Media, held on 8 March 2018.

• Monday, March 12th 2018 - 09:33 UTC

  Hammond: no end to austerity: surpluses will be used to lower UK debt

  

  British Chancellor Philip Hammond has rejected calls by Labour and some Conservatives to announce the end of austerity in his spring statement on Tuesday. He is expected to unveil the smallest budget deficit since 2002, thanks to better than expected public finances.

• Monday, March 12th 2018 - 09:20 UTC

  Argentine embassy honors identification effort at Falklands' Darwin cemetery

  

  The former lead singer of Pink Floyd, Roger Waters, Malvinas veteran Julio Aro, British ex Colonel Geoffrey Cardozo and Argentine journalist Gaby Cociffi were honored last Friday with “Two Roses for Peace” at the Argentine embassy residence in London in a ceremony hosted by ambassador Carlo Sersale Di Cerisano.

• Monday, March 12th 2018 - 09:18 UTC

  China names an emperor for life: how imperialist the change will be?

  

  In the short space of two weeks, China has announced and now voted with near unanimous approval to amend the country’s constitution and give the party state’s powerful leader Xi Jinping a mandate to stay in office indefinitely. On Sunday, a controversial amendment to scrap a two-term limit on the office of the president was approved along with 20 other changes.

• Monday, March 12th 2018 - 07:12 UTC

  Sir Alan Duncan attends Chilean president Piñera's inauguration

  

  Foreign Office minister for Europe and the Americas Sir Alan Duncan represented the UK in the inauguration of the new president of Chile, Sebastian Piñera. Minister Duncan arrived in Santiago on Saturday and part of his agenda is to discuss the future of UK-Chile bilateral relations with the incoming administration.

• Friday, March 9th 2018 - 17:44 UTC

  An opening — nothing more — with North Korea (*)

  

  After meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, South Korean officials have reported that North Korea is willing to hold talks with the United States about its nuclear weapons program. If true — and there is much to be confirmed — the offer should be pursued. Caution must be the watchword of any discussions, however. Talks are welcome, but their goal must be the rollback and eventual elimination of North Korea’s nuclear weapons program. Negotiations can never legitimate Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions or accept its status as a nuclear-weapon possessing state.

• Friday, March 9th 2018 - 17:31 UTC

  China, Russia and Japan applaud the announced Trump-Kim Jong Un meeting

  

  China, Japan and Russia have cheered an impending meeting between United States President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as a “significant first step” towards the de-nuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

• Friday, March 9th 2018 - 11:39 UTC

  Sharp reaction from Asian nations to Trump's tariffs on steel and aluminum

  

  Major Asian nations reacted sharply to U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports on Friday, warning of damage to relations amid industry calls for retaliation.

• Friday, March 9th 2018 - 09:41 UTC

  Global shipping rules to cut sulfur pollution anticipate higher volatility in fuel markets

  

  Global hydrocarbons companies and traders are bracing for higher volatility in fuel markets as they expect refiners to process more light crude oil in the lead-up to new rules aimed at slashing the use of dirty high-sulfur fuel oil in global shipping.