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Denmark, US and Greenland to Discuss Arctic Security

FILE PHOTO: Greenland's flag flies in Igaliku settlement, Greenland, July 5, 2024. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Greenland's flag flies in Igaliku settlement, Greenland, July 5, 2024. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo
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Denmark, US and Greenland to Discuss Arctic Security

FILE PHOTO: Greenland's flag flies in Igaliku settlement, Greenland, July 5, 2024. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Greenland's flag flies in Igaliku settlement, Greenland, July 5, 2024. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo

Denmark agreed on Friday to discuss the Arctic region with Washington, Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said, after his first phone call with the top diplomat of the administration of President Donald Trump, who wants control of Greenland.
Rasmussen and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a 20-minute conversation in a "good and constructive tone", discussing Ukraine, European security and the situation in the Middle East, the Danish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The State Department said late on Friday that Rubio had "reaffirmed the strength of the relationship" between the two countries in the call.
Trump has expressed an interest in making Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark, part of the United States. He has not ruled out using military or economic power to persuade Denmark to hand it over.
Greenland's strategic location along the shortest route from Europe to North America, vital for the US ballistic missile warning system, has made it a priority for Trump.
Denmark's prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, on Jan. 15 said she had spoken on the phone with Trump and told him that it is up to Greenland itself to decide on any independence.
The Financial Times reported on Friday that last week's call between Frederiksen and Trump was fiery, with Trump insisting he was serious about his determination to take over Greenland. The paper cited European officials. Trump took office on Jan. 20.
"Arctic security was not on the agenda, but it was agreed that it will be discussed between the United States, Denmark and Greenland at a later date, the Danish ministry said on Friday.
Greenland's prime minister, Mute Egede, who has stepped up a push for independence, has repeatedly said the island is not for sale and that it is up to its people to decide their future.
While Trump had aired the possibility of taking over Greenland in 2019, during his first term in the White House, his refusal to rule out the use of military or economic power has caught many Danes by surprise.

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World

Russia Vows Strikes on Kyiv in Response to Election-day Attacks

Smoke rises behind a multi-story building following a reported Ukrainian drone attack in Dzerzhinsky, Moscow region, Russia, 20 September 2026. EPA/STRINGER
Smoke rises behind a multi-story building following a reported Ukrainian drone attack in Dzerzhinsky, Moscow region, Russia, 20 September 2026. EPA/STRINGER
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Russia Vows Strikes on Kyiv in Response to Election-day Attacks

Smoke rises behind a multi-story building following a reported Ukrainian drone attack in Dzerzhinsky, Moscow region, Russia, 20 September 2026. EPA/STRINGER
Smoke rises behind a multi-story building following a reported Ukrainian drone attack in Dzerzhinsky, Moscow region, Russia, 20 September 2026. EPA/STRINGER

Russia vowed Sunday to "intensify" its strikes on Kyiv in response to a wave of Ukrainian drone attacks on Moscow during three-day parliamentary elections.

"In response to the Kyiv regime's attacks on civilian targets within Russia, the Russian army will continue and intensify its high-accuracy strikes against military targets in Kyiv," the Russian defense ministry said, accusing Ukraine of attempting to "disrupt the democratic will of Russian citizens.”

Ukrainian forces fired more than 1,000 drones at Russia overnight, including hundreds that were launched toward Moscow, officials said Sunday, as the Kremlin was wrapping up the third and last day of its parliamentary elections.

Moscow’s mayor described the wave of drones as the “largest ever” drone attack on the Russian capital and said there had been damage to the Moscow Oil Refinery, which is among several sites that supply the Russian capital, and a residential building.

Across the wider Moscow region, the attack killed two people and wounded 20, local Gov. Andrei Vorobyov said. The dead were a 74-year-old man and a 44-year-old woman, he said.

Writing on social media, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Kyiv had used a range of missiles and drones in the attack — including Ukraine's domestically made Flamingo and Pelican missiles — to hit oil and logistics facilities.

World

Iran Shuts Language Center Affiliated with French Embassy in Tehran

Members of Iran's Basij paramilitary force take part in a military rally named Jan-Fada (those willing to sacrifice their lives) in Tehran September 18, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
Members of Iran's Basij paramilitary force take part in a military rally named Jan-Fada (those willing to sacrifice their lives) in Tehran September 18, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
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Iran Shuts Language Center Affiliated with French Embassy in Tehran

Members of Iran's Basij paramilitary force take part in a military rally named Jan-Fada (those willing to sacrifice their lives) in Tehran September 18, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
Members of Iran's Basij paramilitary force take part in a military rally named Jan-Fada (those willing to sacrifice their lives) in Tehran September 18, 2026. (Photo by AFP)

Iranian authorities on Sunday announced the closure of a French language center associated with the embassy, accusing it of having undertaken "illegal activities".

"Based on the Tehran prosecutor's office, the illegal center affiliated with the French embassy in Tehran, which has operated for years under the guise of language instruction, was closed," the judiciary's Mizan news website said, referring to the French Language Centre (CLF).

According to AFP, the judiciary accused the center of conducting "illegal acts that violated diplomatic conventions".

It alleged the center "abused its status as a language training facility" and sought to "identify and build networks among the country's elite figures while facilitating their departure".

There was no immediate comment from the French embassy.

Relations between Tehran and Paris have been strained in recent months.

Last month, France announced the expulsion of two Iranian diplomats in response to the brief arrest and banning of two French envoys to Iran.

Tehran had accused the two French diplomats of "interference in Iran's internal affairs".

World

Iran Reportedly Informed that US Plans to Resume Action

A member of Iran's Revolutionary Guard salutes while riding on a float displaying drones during the state-organized "Janfada," or "Sacrifice for Iran," military-style parade in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Sept. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A member of Iran's Revolutionary Guard salutes while riding on a float displaying drones during the state-organized "Janfada," or "Sacrifice for Iran," military-style parade in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Sept. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
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Iran Reportedly Informed that US Plans to Resume Action

A member of Iran's Revolutionary Guard salutes while riding on a float displaying drones during the state-organized "Janfada," or "Sacrifice for Iran," military-style parade in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Sept. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A member of Iran's Revolutionary Guard salutes while riding on a float displaying drones during the state-organized "Janfada," or "Sacrifice for Iran," military-style parade in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Sept. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iran received information that the United States, with the backing of some regional countries, was preparing to resume actions against ⁠Iran, the country's central military ⁠command said in a statement on Sunday, according to ⁠state media.

The military said that any US attack would trigger sustained strikes on US bases and interests in the region, the report ⁠added, ⁠warning that regional countries supporting US aggression against Iran would be considered parties to the conflict.

This came after US President Donald Trump cut short a weekend at Camp David to return unexpectedly to the White House on Saturday.

Iranian parliament speaker ⁠Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Sunday that Tehran will not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until its conditions are met and US commitments are ⁠implemented.