Politics

Israel's security cabinet approved 19 new settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank, marking the highest rate of expansion since 2017 and further undermining a two-state solution.

An Israeli airstrike killed at least three people in southern Lebanon on Dec. 22, the latest violation of a fragile Nov. 2024 ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah that both sides have failed to fully implement.

Thailand and Cambodia agree to restart ceasefire talks after a deadly border conflict killed 41 and displaced nearly a million. The previous Trump-brokered deal collapsed, with a top Thai official calling it 'rushed'.

President Donald Trump's appointment of a special envoy to facilitate Greenland's annexation into the U.S. has triggered a major diplomatic conflict with Denmark, a key NATO ally.

Beijing lodges a protest with Tokyo over visits to Taiwan by senior Japanese LDP lawmakers, escalating tensions amid a downturn in bilateral relations and heightening regional security concerns.

China's Xi Jinping has promoted two key generals overseeing the Taiwan Strait and Beijing, a move seen as an effort to stabilize the military after a major anti-corruption purge.

A new report warns that China's record 2025 trade surplus could trigger global protectionism, complicating its economic growth targets for 2026 as export performance faces new headwinds.

In December 2025, peace talks to end the war in Ukraine are ongoing in Miami, attended by representatives from Russia, Ukraine, and the Trump administration. The world watches to see if a breakthrough is possible.

After a 14-year shutdown since the 2011 Fukushima disaster, a local government in Japan has approved the restart of the world's largest nuclear power plant, Kashiwazaki-Kariwa.

The Trump administration says the World Coast Guard is pursuing an oil tanker for violating its blockade on Venezuela, escalating a pressure campaign and raising tensions over maritime law.

A leading expert, Diao Daming of Renmin University, warns that the U.S. tendency to analyze China through an 'American lens' leads to policy missteps and hampers efforts to build trust.

China's Ministry of Commerce has imposed provisional anti-subsidy duties of up to 42.7% on certain EU dairy products after a 16-month investigation found that EU subsidies caused "material injury" to its domestic industry.