عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Xi Tells Kim China Willing to Work with N.Korea for 'World Peace'

The North Korean leader receives the Chinese president at Pyongyang airport in 2019 (Reuters)
The North Korean leader receives the Chinese president at Pyongyang airport in 2019 (Reuters)
TT
TT

Xi Tells Kim China Willing to Work with N.Korea for 'World Peace'

The North Korean leader receives the Chinese president at Pyongyang airport in 2019 (Reuters)
The North Korean leader receives the Chinese president at Pyongyang airport in 2019 (Reuters)

Chinese President Xi Jinping told North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that Beijing was willing to work with Pyongyang for world peace, North Korean state media said Saturday.

The message from Xi came days after North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile in one of its most powerful tests yet, declaring it would meet perceived US nuclear threats with nukes of its own, AFP reported.

North Korea has conducted a record-breaking blitz of missile launches in recent weeks and fears have grown that it is building up to a seventh nuclear test, its first since 2017.

In his message to Kim, Xi said Beijing was ready to work with the North for "peace, stability, development and prosperity of the region and the world," Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

Xi said he was willing to collaborate with Pyongyang as "changes in the world, times, and history are taking place in unprecedented ways," KCNA said, quoting from the message it said was received in response to congratulations from Kim after the Chinese Communist Party Congress last month handed Xi a third term.

Days before North Korea's ICBM launch, Xi met on the sidelines of a Group of 20 summit in Bali with US President Joe Biden, who voiced confidence that Beijing does not want to see a further escalation by Pyongyang.

Washington has said it wants China, Pyongyang's most important ally and economic benefactor, to use its influence to help rein in North Korea.

The November 18 missile launch appeared to be Pyongyang's newest ICBM with the potential range to hit the US mainland.

The UN Security Council convened an open meeting over the launch, with the United States, Britain, France and India among 14 nations to "strongly condemn" Pyongyang's actions.

But a Western diplomat told AFP that China and Russia had chosen not to put their names to Monday's statement.

Earlier this month, the United States accused Beijing and Moscow of protecting Pyongyang from further punishment.

In May, China and Russia vetoed a US-led effort to tighten sanctions on North Korea in response to earlier launches.

Pyongyang is already under multiple sets of international sanctions over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, and China accounts for more than 90 percent of the impoverished country's bilateral trade.

Most Viewed

 
 
World

China Fireworks Factory Explosion Kills Tens, Injures 61

Image from the explosion site (Chinese media)
Image from the explosion site (Chinese media)
TT
TT

China Fireworks Factory Explosion Kills Tens, Injures 61

Image from the explosion site (Chinese media)
Image from the explosion site (Chinese media)

The death toll from a giant explosion at a fireworks factory in central China rose to 26, with 61 more injured, officials said Tuesday.

The explosion occurred at around 4:43 pm on Monday at the Liuyang Huasheng Fireworks Manufacturing and Display Company in Liuyang, Hunan province, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Following the blast, all fireworks makers in Hunan's provincial capital Changsha, which administers Liuyang, had been ordered to stop production ahead of safety inspections, CCTV said.

Videos on social media from Monday showed continuous explosions accompanied by a vast cloud of smoke rising high into the air in a rural area surrounded by mountains, said AFP.

Drone footage from CCTV taken a day later showed a swathe of smoldering debris where buildings had stood, with rescue workers and excavators scouring the rubble.

Smoke continued to rise from some buildings left standing, many of them with their roofs blown off.

Changsha mayor Chen Bozhang told a news conference on Tuesday afternoon that another five people had died since earlier reports that 21 were killed.

"We feel deeply grieved and filled with remorse," Chen said, adding that search and rescue work was "basically complete".

The central government had sent experts to guide rescue efforts, while more than 480 rescuers had been urgently dispatched to the site, according to CCTV.

They had established a 3-kilometer (1.9-mile) control zone around the site and evacuated people nearby.

Police had apprehended the company's management while investigations into the cause of the accident continue, CCTV said.

President Xi Jinping had called for "all-out efforts" to treat the injured, search for missing persons, and for those responsible to be held accountable, state news agency Xinhua reported.

Liuyang is a major fireworks hub, producing around 60 percent of the fireworks sold in China and 70 percent of those exported.

Industrial accidents, including in the fireworks industry, are common in China due to lax safety standards.

Last year, an explosion at another fireworks factory in Hunan killed nine people, and in 2023, three people were killed after blasts struck residential buildings in the northern city of Tianjin.

In February, separate explosions at fireworks shops in Hubei and Jiangsu provinces killed 12 and eight people.

World

Ukraine to Observe Own Truce with Russia Starting May 6, Zelensky Says

A resident stands near buildings damaged by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the city of Chornomorsk, Odesa region, Ukraine May 3, 2026. (Reuters)
A resident stands near buildings damaged by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the city of Chornomorsk, Odesa region, Ukraine May 3, 2026. (Reuters)
TT
TT

Ukraine to Observe Own Truce with Russia Starting May 6, Zelensky Says

A resident stands near buildings damaged by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the city of Chornomorsk, Odesa region, Ukraine May 3, 2026. (Reuters)
A resident stands near buildings damaged by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the city of Chornomorsk, Odesa region, Ukraine May 3, 2026. (Reuters)

Ukraine will observe its own truce with Russia starting May 6, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday, after Moscow declared a unilateral truce with Ukraine over the May 9 Russian holiday.

"As of today, there has been no official appeal to Ukraine regarding the modality of a cessation of hostilities that is being claimed on Russian social media," Zelensky said in a post on X.

"In this regard, we are announcing a ceasefire regime starting at 00:00 (2100 GMT) on the night of May 5-6. In the time left until that moment, it is realistic to ensure that silence takes effect," he added.

World

Alberta Separatist Group Says It Has Enough Signatures to Trigger Referendum on Leaving Canada

This aerial view shows the downtown skyline in Edmonton, Canada, at sunset on May 3, 2026. (AFP)
This aerial view shows the downtown skyline in Edmonton, Canada, at sunset on May 3, 2026. (AFP)
TT
TT

Alberta Separatist Group Says It Has Enough Signatures to Trigger Referendum on Leaving Canada

This aerial view shows the downtown skyline in Edmonton, Canada, at sunset on May 3, 2026. (AFP)
This aerial view shows the downtown skyline in Edmonton, Canada, at sunset on May 3, 2026. (AFP)

Alberta separatists said Monday they have formally submitted almost 302,000 signatures to try to trigger a referendum on the province leaving Canada.

The group needed 178,000 signatures to force the province to consider such a vote.

The question of separation could go on a provincewide ballot as early as October, as Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has said she would move forward if enough names are gathered and verified. Smith has said she personally does not support the oil-rich province leaving Canada.

A “yes” vote would not trigger independence automatically. Negotiations with the federal government would have to take place and Daniel Béland, a political science professor at McGill University in Montreal, said some Indigenous groups who are already using the courts to prevent an independence referendum would use venues including the courts to stop independence from happening.

Mitch Sylvestre, the head of Stay Free Alberta, arrived at the Elections Alberta office in Edmonton on Monday leading a convoy of seven trucks to deliver the names.

“This day is historic in Alberta history,” Sylvestre said. “It’s the first step to the next step — we’ve gotten by Round 3 and now we’re in the Stanley Cup final.”

He said most papers were handled five times to verify the signatures.

More than 300 supporters gathered, waving the provincial flag and chanting “Alberta strong.”

However, the petition could face another hurdle this week as an Edmonton, Alberta, judge is expected to rule on a court challenge launched by a group of Alberta First Nations who say Alberta separation would violate treaty rights.

Smith has accused previous federal Liberal governments of introducing legislation that hamstrings Alberta’s ability to produce and export oil, which she said has cost the province billions of dollars. She also said she doesn’t want the federal government meddling in provincial issues.

Prime Minister Mark Carney's federal government did not immediately respond to the development.

Béland, the political science professor at McGill, said a referendum is likely to lose.

“Right now, support for independence in Alberta is rather low. Less than 30% and much lower if we only focus on hard core supporters. And the odds of a victory of the pro-independence camp appear to be low at this stage," he said.

Béland also said considering recent news of a large data breach involving an Alberta separatist group, the formal verification process is especially crucial to make sure the signatures are authentic.

“Mark Carney is indeed popular, even in Alberta. The push for independence by some Albertans predates his prime ministership and it’s related to economic, fiscal, and political grievances about the seemingly unfair treatment of Alberta by the federal government," he said. “These concerns increased during the Justin Trudeau years but they have peaked and even declined since he left office.”