Foreign
NoKor likely to run nuke trial amid missile testing: US report
March 9, 2023, 6:17 pm
WASHINGTON – North Korea is expected to conduct a nuclear test as it continues to develop its missile capabilities in an attempt to drive a wedge between the United States and South Korea, a U.S. intelligence report said Wednesday. The 2023 Annual Threat Assessment also noted that North Korean… Read More
Afghanistan 'most repressive country in the world' on women’s rig
March 9, 2023, 5:40 pm
WASHINGTON – UN Special Representative for Afghanistan Roza Otunbayeva said Wednesday that under the Taliban, Afghanistan "remains the most repressive country in the world" when it comes to women’s rights. "The bans against women working, studying, traveling without a male companion, and even… Read More
UN chief calls for action to close ‘connectivity gap’
March 9, 2023, 5:31 pm
UNITED NATIONS – United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday called for action to close the connectivity gap as an effort to realize the potential of technology to advance gender equality. "We must break down the barriers that keep women and girls offline," Guterres said in… Read More
'No breaking of law,' British exec says on illegal migrant bill
March 9, 2023, 9:33 am
LONDON – British Home Secretary Suella Braverman on Wednesday continued to defend the country's controversial illegal migrant legislation, saying the government is not "breaking the law." "We are very confident that our measures that we've announced yesterday are in compliance with our… Read More
Int’l Women’s Day: EU sanctions perpetrators of sexual violence
March 8, 2023, 6:30 pm
BRUSSELS – The European Union blacklisted on Tuesday nine individuals, including two Afghan ministers and Myanmar’s deputy home affairs minister, as well as three entities for human rights violations targeting women. “The Council (of the European Union) decided today to impose restrictive… Read More
BTA magazine special issue on Ukraine war presented in Bolgrad
March 8, 2023, 5:55 pm
BOLGRAD, Ukraine – The February issue of BTA's LIK magazine, which is dedicated to the war in Ukraine with a focus on the Bulgarians there, was presented in Bolgrad, Ukraine on Monday. "People in Bulgaria pray that Bulgarians in Ukraine live again in peace," BTA Director Kiril Valchev told the… Read More
BTA, MOLDPRESS ink cooperation agreement
March 8, 2023, 5:53 pm
CHISINAU/SOFIA – The Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) Director General Kiril Valchev and MOLDPRESS Director General Petru Beregoi signed an agreement for cooperation and exchange of news in Chisinau, Moldova on Tuesday. The two news agencies agreed to provide each other with and distribute the full… Read More
China defense budget hike ‘normal’ - PH envoy
March 8, 2023, 3:33 pm
BEIJING – Philippine Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China Jaime FlorCruz said Beijing’s move to increase its defense budget by 7.2 percent to 1.55 trillion yuan (about USD225 billion) for 2023 is normal among the big economies, like China, to boost their military capabilities. “I… Read More
Iran makes 1st arrests linked to serial poisoning of schoolgirls
March 8, 2023, 3:29 pm
TEHRAN, Iran – Iranian authorities on Tuesday announced the first arrests linked to the serial poisoning of schoolgirls that has sent shockwaves across the country in recent months. Speaking to state TV, Deputy Interior Minister Majid Mirahmadi said "some people" have been arrested across five… Read More
Senators introduce bill that could lead to TikTok US ban
March 8, 2023, 3:09 pm
WASHINGTON – A bipartisan pair of high-ranking US senators introduced legislation Tuesday that would give federal authorities the power to ban TikTok and other technology companies over their alleged threats to national security. Mark Warner, the Democratic chairperson of the Senate Intelligence… Read More
Airline group: Worldwide fatal air accident tally dropped in 2022
March 7, 2023, 9:19 pm
GENEVA – The number of fatal air accidents worldwide declined in 2022 compared to the previous year, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said on Tuesday. The annual report by IATA also showed a reduction in the fatality risk in the five years in 2018-2022, with five accidents… Read More
Official: Indonesia must push sustainable development in ASEAN
March 7, 2023, 6:03 pm
JAKARTA -- Sustainable development, including the energy transition and the development of electric vehicles and blue economy, should be encouraged during Indonesia’s ASEAN chairmanship in 2023, an official from the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs has said. "ASEAN is a promising… Read More
Smoking to be banned in open-air settings in Italy
March 7, 2023, 5:37 pm
ROME – Smoking is to be banned in many open-air settings in Italy, 20 years after it was banned indoors, La Stampa newspaper reported on Sunday. The new ban, covering outside areas of bars, bus stops and parks where children and pregnant women are present, will also cover e-cigarettes and heated… Read More
Economic damage from world's major quakes nears $1T
March 6, 2023, 7:18 pm
LONDON – Besides causing tens of thousands of deaths and unprecedented sorrow, the world’s major earthquakes in the last 50 years also created nearly USD1 trillion in economic damage, according to data compiled by Anadolu. The March 11, 2011 magnitude 9.1 earthquake and tsunami in Tohoku,… Read More
4-year-old boy eyes Guinness Record for writing books
March 5, 2023, 4:49 pm
BIRMINGHAM, England – At 15 months, Jayce Joyce already had a passion for reading and writing. He tried to understand the photos in picture books and draw them. Now, at the age of four, he is eligible to apply for the Guinness Book of World Records as the youngest person to publish a book and a… Read More
11 countries listed that may become visa-free for Russians
March 5, 2023, 1:47 pm
MOSCOW – Russia is preparing intergovernmental agreements on visa-free travel with 11 countries, said State Secretary-Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Yevgeny Ivanov told news agency TASS. These countries are Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia, The Bahamas, Barbados, Haiti, Zambia, Kuwait, Mexico,… Read More
Dragneva is BTA's new permanent correspondent in Odessa, Ukraine
March 4, 2023, 7:38 pm
ODESSA, Ukraine - Svetlana Dragneva is now a permanent correspondent for the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) in Odessa, Ukraine, BTA Director General Kirill Valchev announced Friday during the presentation of BTA's LIK magazine in Odessa. Dragneva has been working as an editor in BTA's BG World… Read More
India nabs 3 workers of cough syrup firm linked to child death
March 4, 2023, 1:31 pm
NEW DELHI – India police arrested Friday three employees of a company that manufactured cough syrup linked to the death of at least 19 children in Uzbekistan last year. India launched a probe in December after authorities in Uzbekistan said children there died allegedly because of side effects… Read More
Volunteers rescue over 1.5K animals after earthquakes in Türkiye
March 3, 2023, 7:44 pm
ISTANBUL – Over 1,500 pets have been rescued so far since the twin earthquakes hit southern Türkiye, a non-profit organization said Thursday. “More than three weeks after the deadly earthquake in Türkiye, the animal rescue team from Humane Society International is still finding dogs and cats… Read More
Former US lawyer found guilty of murdering wife, son
March 3, 2023, 6:16 pm
HOUSTON, US – Alex Murdaugh, a disgraced lawyer accused of killing his wife and youngest son in the US state of South Carolina, was found guilty by a jury Thursday for the brutal slayings. Murdaugh, 54, was convicted of two counts of murder for the deadly shootings of his wife, Margaret, 52, and… Read More
