International

• Friday, February 7th 2020 - 09:01 UTC

  Christina Koch shatters spaceflight record for female astronauts with eleven months in the Space Station

  

  NASA's Christina Koch returned to Earth safely on Thursday after shattering the spaceflight record for female astronauts with a stay of almost 11 months aboard the International Space Station. Koch touched down at 0912 GMT on the Kazakh steppe after 328 days in space, along with Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency and Alexander Skvortsov of the Russian space agency.

• Friday, February 7th 2020 - 08:54 UTC

  Chinese doctor who warned about coronavirus and reprimanded for “spreading rumors” has died of the infection

  

  A Chinese doctor who was among the first to warn publicly about the new coronavirus outbreak - and was reprimanded by authorities for “spreading rumours” - died of the infection early on Friday, his hospital announced.

• Thursday, February 6th 2020 - 09:09 UTC

  Coronavirus deaths keep climbing; China increasingly isolated by air and sea

  

  The death toll from a new coronavirus in mainland China jumped by 73 to 563 on Thursday, its third consecutive record daily rise, as experts intensified efforts to find a vaccine for a disease that has shut down Chinese cities and forced thousands more into quarantine around the world.

• Thursday, February 6th 2020 - 09:05 UTC

  Argentina tells IMF it can't continue servicing unsustainable debt

  

  Argentina on Wednesday told the International Monetary Fund that Buenos Aires cannot continue servicing unsustainable debt, as the IMF encouraged it to enact efficient restructuring policies.

• Thursday, February 6th 2020 - 08:58 UTC

  Pope Francis calls for debt sustainability to alleviate the suffering of people

  

  Pope Francis staged a surprise visit to admonish the International Monetary Fund chief and several finance ministers to help alleviate the debt burden of struggling countries, calling for “a new financial architecture” to ensure social justice.

• Thursday, February 6th 2020 - 08:44 UTC

  Statement by IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on Argentina

  

  Ms. Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), issued the following statement after meeting with Argentina’s Economy Minister Martin Guzmán in Rome:

• Wednesday, February 5th 2020 - 09:50 UTC

  Fernandez in Paris, the last leg of the European tour after support for its debt restructuring strategy

  

  Argentine president Alberto Fernandez and his delegation are in Paris preparing for a full agenda on Wednesday which includes a working breakfast with French business leaders, a private meeting with his peer Emmanuel Macron and lunch at the Elysee Palace, and finally a conference at the prestigious French Political Science School.

• Wednesday, February 5th 2020 - 09:43 UTC

  Argentina's Economy minister holds “very constructive” talks with IMF chief

  

  Argentina’s Economy Minister Martin Guzman met the head of the International Monetary Fund Kristalina Georgieva for two-and-a-half hours on Tuesday to discuss the country’s economic emergency, the ministry said.

• Wednesday, February 5th 2020 - 09:40 UTC

  Ten coronavirus positive cases in quarantined cruise vessel with 3.371 passengers in Japanese waters

  

  At least 10 passengers on a cruise ship that Japan quarantined tested positive for the new coronavirus, public broadcaster NHK and other Japanese media reported on Wednesday, citing the health ministry.

• Wednesday, February 5th 2020 - 09:35 UTC

  Falklands' civilian Sea King crash lands in Hampshire; corrosion to blame

  

  Mechanical failures after a helicopter was transported from the Falkland Islands caused it to crash land, investigators have found.