Author: DW

Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu asserted his country’s independence amid fraying relations with India, as the island nation seeks closer ties with Beijing. “We may be small but that doesn’t give you the license to bully us,” President Muizzu told the media after returning from  a visit to China on Saturday, in an apparent reference to the recent diplomatic row between the Maldives and its neighbor, India.  “We are not a country that is in the backyard of another country.” he said. What caused the rift with India? The Maldives has a population of around 520,000 and includes a total of 1,192 islands off India’s southern coast,…

Crises in Africa are being overlooked, with news about humanitarian emergencies on the continent buried beneath the weight of media attention focused elsewhere, Care International’s 2023 report concludes. That means issues such as hunger in Angola, chronic malnutrition in Burundi and high child mortality in the Central African Republic are disappearing from public view, the authors concluded. Analyst Fredson Guilengue from the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation in Johannesburg sees reasons for the low interest in Africa’s plight in the escalation of the two conflicts in the West. “The first is the continuation of the Russia-Ukraine war. It is getting a lot of attention worldwide, especially on the European continent, because the war is returning to Europe,”…

The winner of Taiwan’s presidential election says voters have shown the world “how much we cherish democracy” after his party, which champions autonomy from China, secured a third term.Lai Ching-te, the leader of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), is set to replace Tsai Ing-wen, who has served the limit of two terms. It is the first time a party has won a third term under Taiwan’s current electoral system.Voters cast their ballots in the presidential and parliamentary election on Saturday after a campaign overshadowed by tensions with China, which claims the territory as its own.China, which has been ramping up…

Polish former Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski said on Wednesday that he would be starting a hunger strike in prison, a day after he was arrested despite having taken refuge with political ally and President Andrzej Duda in the presidential palace in Warsaw.  Kaminski is a senior politician with Poland’s largest political party, PiS, which lost control of government in recent elections but still holds the presidency.  “I declare that I treat my conviction… as an act of political revenge,” Kaminski said in the statement, read by his former deputy, Blazej Pobozy, at a press conference. “As a political prisoner, I started…

The monarchies of Denmark and Britain do things very differently.Copenhagen’s royal handover seems a far cry from the coronation of the King. But both monarchies face similar existential questions. Denmark’s solution though, isn’t something Britain wants to contemplate, for now.On her 21st birthday the late Queen said: “I declare that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service.” These solemnly spoken words were a promise she meant and kept.When her son gave his first public address as King, he repeated her rhetoric. “That promise of lifelong service I renew to you all today,”…

Skip next section Ministers to prepare possible Zelenskyy-Orban meeting01/11/2024January 11, 2024Ministers to prepare possible Zelenskyy-Orban meetingUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy could soon meet with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban as Hungary continues to block EU aid earmarked for Kyiv. To pave the way for a potential meeting between the two leaders, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and his Hungarian counterpart, Peter Szijjarto, are set to meet in the western Ukrainian city of Uzhhorod on January 29, both sides said. The head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Andrii Yermak, is also expected to attend, according to Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleh Nikolenko. Ukraine has been fighting off a Russian…

The number of people who have died following a mudslide in western Colombia has risen to 34.The mudslide struck a busy road on Friday in a mountainous area connecting the cities of Quibdo and Medellin. Colombia’s National Disaster Risk Management Unit initially said at least 18 people were killed. The agency also said at least 35 injured people were taken to hospitals. Image: Rescuers search for survivors of a landslide caused by heavy rains in Choco Read more world newsJournalist relives moment gun was put to his neckTerminally-ill Eriksson reveals last unfulfilled wishThe new death toll was reported by the…

Germany is the latest European country gripped by a wave of turbulent farmers’ protests. In a week of action throughout the nation set to last until Friday, the agricultural sector is pushing back against proposed cuts to subsidies for fuel used in farming. Convoys consisting of thousands of tractors and trucks have unleashed travel chaos and cut off several cities in recent days. Production at a Volkswagen facility in the northern city of Emden even ground to a halt. Last week, Economy Minister Robert Habeck was blockaded by angry protesters as he tried to disembark from a ferry during a family…

All 178 prison officials taken hostage by inmates in Ecuador have been freed, the prisons authority on Saturday, amid a deteriorating security situation in the South American country. According to the SNAI prisons authority, the 158 guards and 20 administrative staff members who had been held hostage since Monday were now free. There were reports of violence in several prisons. Within the last 24 hours one guard was killed and another injured, the SNAI said in a statement. While the army and the police raided detention centers in six cities, five inmates escaped from the vast Guayaquil prison complex on…

Britain could strike Houthi targets in Yemen again if the rebel group continues to attack ships in the Red Sea, the foreign secretary has suggested.Lord Cameron warned the Iran-linked fighters could force up prices in Britain if they are allowed to block the passage of container ships in the busy trade route. The US struck another site in Yemen early on Saturday after the Houthis vowed revenge for the bombing raid carried out by the Americans and the RAF a day earlier.Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, Lord Cameron said the joint action “will have gone some way to degrade Houthi…