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Iraqi-Iranian Agreement on ‘Achieving Stability in the Middle East’

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran, June 26, 2022. President Website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran, June 26, 2022. President Website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
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Iraqi-Iranian Agreement on ‘Achieving Stability in the Middle East’

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran, June 26, 2022. President Website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran, June 26, 2022. President Website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS

Iraq’s Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi met with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Tehran on Sunday.

“We have agreed to work together to bring stability and calm to the region,” Kadhimi said in a joint televised news conference with Raisi.

“Dialogue with regional officials can resolve the regional issues without foreign intervention,” Raisi said.

Kadhimi arrived in Tehran after visiting Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah to discuss regional and bilateral issues. The premier is being accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising political and economic officials.

According to a statement carried by the Iraq News Agency (INA), the meeting reiterated commitment to supporting the armistice in Yemen and reinforcing peace efforts there. It also affirmed that a peace solution for the Yemeni crisis must stem from the internal will of Yemenis.

“We also agreed to make joint efforts to meet the challenges of food security posed by the Ukraine war,” said Raisi, according to Iran’s presidential website.

“Good bilateral and regional relations between Iraq and Iran can be very effective in role-playing of the two countries in the region and international issues,” added the president.

Raisi stressed the need to resolve the problems of the Yemeni people as soon as possible and establish a ceasefire in the country.

“Lifting the siege of Yemen and the Yemenis, and the Yemeni-Yemeni dialogue can solve the problems of this country and end the suffering of Yemeni people,” said Raisi.

“Without a doubt, the continuation of this war is fruitless and will not result in anything but the suffering of the Yemeni people, so this war must be ended as soon as possible and the ceasefire can be a step towards resolving the issues,” he added.

“Iran and Iraq emphasize the need for peace and stability in the region and we believe that peace in the region happens through the role-playing of the officials of all countries in the region and the presence of foreigners in the region will not solve any problem, but instead will add to the problems,” warned Raisi.

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World

Philippines Summons China’s Envoy Over Remarks Conveying ‘Threat’

This handout photo taken on October 19, 2026 and released by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) shows Philippine Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs Maria Theresa Lazaro (L) and China's Ambassador to the Philippines Jing Quan posing for a photo during their meeting at the foreign ministry office in Manila. (Handout / Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs / AFP)
This handout photo taken on October 19, 2026 and released by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) shows Philippine Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs Maria Theresa Lazaro (L) and China's Ambassador to the Philippines Jing Quan posing for a photo during their meeting at the foreign ministry office in Manila. (Handout / Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs / AFP)
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Philippines Summons China’s Envoy Over Remarks Conveying ‘Threat’

This handout photo taken on October 19, 2026 and released by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) shows Philippine Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs Maria Theresa Lazaro (L) and China's Ambassador to the Philippines Jing Quan posing for a photo during their meeting at the foreign ministry office in Manila. (Handout / Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs / AFP)
This handout photo taken on October 19, 2026 and released by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) shows Philippine Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs Maria Theresa Lazaro (L) and China's Ambassador to the Philippines Jing Quan posing for a photo during their meeting at the foreign ministry office in Manila. (Handout / Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs / AFP)

The Philippine foreign ministry on Monday summoned China's ambassador to express its "serious concern and strong objection" about remarks by the envoy that it said conveyed a threat of the use of force.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro summoned Ambassador Jing Quan and told him comments he made to media last week were "provocative and unacceptable", the Department of Foreign Affairs ‌said in ‌a statement.

Jing had told reporters ‌that ⁠China "may easily win" ⁠in a confrontation with the Philippines, but Beijing would not use force because "we love peace".

He was responding to a question about the Philippine defense secretary describing China as a regional troublemaker.

Diplomatic squabbles between China and US ally the ⁠Philippines have become more frequent ‌in recent years, typically ‌over standoffs and altercations between rival vessels in the ‌South China Sea, much of which ‌Beijing claims sovereignty over.

Manila has accused China's coast guard of aggressive conduct in the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, while Beijing insists it is enforcing the law ‌against vessels that are encroaching on its territory.

China's embassy in Manila did ⁠not ⁠immediately respond to a request for comment on the ambassador being summoned. It last week said Jing had been selectively quoted and his remarks over-interpreted.

Lazaro told Jing the comments aggravated an already sensitive atmosphere between the two countries and undermined mutual efforts to build understanding and cooperation, the foreign ministry said.

Sensitive issues should be addressed through established diplomatic channels and bilateral mechanisms that reserve space for dialogue and engagement, she said.

World

Austrian Airlines Flight from Tel Aviv Diverts to Sofia After ‘Threat’

An Austrian Airlines Boeing 777-200ER lands at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), in Los Angeles, California, on June 14, 2026. (AFP via Getty Images)
An Austrian Airlines Boeing 777-200ER lands at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), in Los Angeles, California, on June 14, 2026. (AFP via Getty Images)
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Austrian Airlines Flight from Tel Aviv Diverts to Sofia After ‘Threat’

An Austrian Airlines Boeing 777-200ER lands at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), in Los Angeles, California, on June 14, 2026. (AFP via Getty Images)
An Austrian Airlines Boeing 777-200ER lands at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), in Los Angeles, California, on June 14, 2026. (AFP via Getty Images)

An Austrian Airlines flight from Tel Aviv carrying 57 people was diverted to the Bulgarian capital Sofia late on Sunday after a threat was made against the aircraft, an airline spokesperson told Reuters.

Austrian Airlines said the threat was made against flight OS82 from Tel ‌Aviv to ‌Vienna, which required a ‌stopover ⁠in Sofia. The flight ⁠landed safely at 2042 CEST (1842 GMT), it said.

The Airbus A320 is being searched, and passengers will be rebooked onto an alternative flight once that is complete, the airline said. There were 51 ⁠passengers and six crew members aboard.

Data ‌from air tracker ‌Flightradar24 showed that the aircraft, registered OE-LZE, was ‌set to leave Tel Aviv ‌for Vienna but was diverted to Sofia.

Sky News earlier reported, citing Bulgaria’s transport ministry, that the plane landed after a “bomb threat signal.”

“During ‌the flight, on the border with Romania, the crew reported a ⁠bomb ⁠threat signal and decided to land in Sofia extraordinarily,” the ministry said, according to the report.

An Air Force fighter accompanied the plane until it landed in Sofia, with the passengers subsequently taken off the aircraft, the report added.

The ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

World

WSJ: Putin Proposes Summit with Trump and Xi to Discuss Ukraine Deal

Traditional Russian Matryoshka wooden dolls, also known as nesting dolls, depicting US Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump (C), Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) are on display at a gift shop in Moscow, Russia, 06 November 2024. EPA/YURI KOCHETKOV
Traditional Russian Matryoshka wooden dolls, also known as nesting dolls, depicting US Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump (C), Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) are on display at a gift shop in Moscow, Russia, 06 November 2024. EPA/YURI KOCHETKOV
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WSJ: Putin Proposes Summit with Trump and Xi to Discuss Ukraine Deal

Traditional Russian Matryoshka wooden dolls, also known as nesting dolls, depicting US Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump (C), Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) are on display at a gift shop in Moscow, Russia, 06 November 2024. EPA/YURI KOCHETKOV
Traditional Russian Matryoshka wooden dolls, also known as nesting dolls, depicting US Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump (C), Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) are on display at a gift shop in Moscow, Russia, 06 November 2024. EPA/YURI KOCHETKOV

Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed a summit next month with US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to negotiate an end to the four-year-old Ukraine conflict that would favor Moscow, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the discussions.

The proposed summit comes amid warming ties between Trump and Putin especially after the US President announced a deal to buy Russian diesel and signed ‌an order ‌on Friday waiving key sanctions on Moscow.

Citing ‌a ⁠former Russian intelligence ⁠officer briefed on the matter, the paper said that Putin's suggestion came in an October 9 telephone call with Trump that also yielded the diesel deal between the two countries.

The White House did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment, while the Kremlin could not ⁠be immediately reached outside regular business hours. The ‌Russian and Chinese embassies in ‌Washington did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

The Kremlin has ‌suggested holding the trilateral dialogue on the sidelines of ‌the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, the WSJ report said, citing people familiar with the discussions. That summit is set to take place on November 18 to 19 in Shenzhen.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov ‌confirmed to the Journal that discussions were taking place over a potential meeting.

“There is ⁠no clear ⁠understanding yet regarding the meeting itself or its potential agenda, although all three parties acknowledge the hypothetical possibility of such a meeting taking place,” he told the Wall Street Journal.

A senior US official told the Journal that Trump had not agreed to such a summit, but he could be receptive to the idea.

Trump's diesel deal with Putin and the executive order waiving sanctions on Moscow have drawn criticism from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who has warned it would embolden Putin and prolong the war.