U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield slammed Russia on Thursday for convening a UN Security Council meeting "for the sole purpose of spreading disinformation."
Driving the news: Russia had called the meeting to advance allegations that the U.S. and Ukraine are partnering to develop biological weapons.
Driving the news: Putin has deployed veiled nuclear threats several times in the past few months. His remarks come just a day after Putin oversaw the start of annual drills of Russia's strategic nuclear forces.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told Axios his country's military has shot down 260 Iranian-made drones used by Russia in the war in Ukraine.
The big picture: Russia and Iran have repeatedly denied Iranian-made drones are being used in the war, despite growing evidence to the contrary.In recent weeks Russia used Iranian-made Shahed-136 Kamikaze drones against Ukrainian military positions and cities and civilian infrastructure, Ukrainian officials say.
A climate activist was arrested after gluing his head to Johannes Vermeer's iconic "Girl with a Pearl Earring" painting at a museum in the Netherlands on Thursday in protest of oil production, the museum said.
Why it matters: Several demonstrators in Europe have recently glued themselves to famous works of art and streets as part of an attempt to raise awareness the effects of oil production on the environment.
Israel and Lebanon on Thursday finalized the historic U.S.-mediated maritime border agreement in a joint ceremony at the UN base in Naqoura on the border between the two countries.
Why it matters: The agreement ends more than a decade of U.S. diplomatic efforts with several rounds of direct and indirect talks between Israel and Lebanon.
Commercial satellites that the U.S. and its allies are using could become "legitimate" targets for retaliatory action by Russia, a senior Russian foreign ministry official told the United Nations on Wednesday.
Some good news for Europeans, heading into winter: Natural gas prices are plunging, as warm weather and growing stockpiles have massively alleviated pressure.
Why it matters: It suggests the nightmare scenario of winter without heat for millions of Europeans — resulting from the cutoff of Russian energy to the West — has been averted, for now.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) provoked an unusually direct rebuke from the Chinese government this week by proposing sanctions on President Xi Jinping for Beijing's human rights abuses in Xinjiang, Axios has learned.
Driving the news: The Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., sent a furious, 800-word email dated Monday in response to what it called an "arrogant and despicable" bill.
