Mikhail Gorbachev, who ended the Cold War without bloodshed but failed to prevent the collapse of the Soviet Union, died on Tuesday at the age of 91, hospital officials in Moscow said. Gorbachev, the last Soviet president, forged arms reduction deals with the United States and partnerships with Western powers to remove the Iron Curtain that had divided Europe since World War Two and bring about the reunification of Germany. But his internal reforms helped weaken the Soviet Union to the point whe

Foreign Affairs Aug. 31, 2022

WASHINGTON- President Joe Biden said on Wednesday the US government will forgive $10,000 in student loans for millions of debt-saddled former college students, keeping a pledge he made in the 2020 campaign for the WhiteHouse. The move could boost support for his fellow Democrats in the November congressional elections, but some economists said it may fuel inflation, and some Republicans in the US Congress questioned whether the president had the legal authority to cancel the debt. Debt forgivene

Foreign Affairs Aug. 25, 2022

Battles over abortion shifted to state courts on Monday after the US Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to the procedure nationwide, as judges blocked statewide bans in Louisiana and Utah and clinics in Idaho, Kentucky, Mississippi and Texas sued seeking similar relief.  The six are among the 13 states with "trigger laws" designed to ban or severely restrict abortions once the Supreme Court overturned the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that recognized right to th

Foreign Affairs June 28, 2022

Most staff at South Korea's Posco have returned to their offices starting from Friday, a spokesperson of the steelmaker said on Tuesday, making it one of the first major firms in the country to implement back-to-office plans. Posco's move comes as South Korea weighs scrapping social distancing curbs altogether and explores living with COVID-19 amid declining infections. Previously, 50 percent of the company's office-based workforce had worked from home, while its plants in the southern port ci

Industry April 5, 2022

US President Joe Biden will make his first visit to Europe since the invasion of Ukraine to discuss the crisis with NATO allies next week, the White House said on Tuesday as the refugee tally hit 3 million amid more Russian air strikes. Moscow has not captured any of the 10 biggest cities in the country following its incursion that began on Feb. 24, the largest assault on a European state since 1945. Local authorities said Tuesday's bombardments on Kyiv killed at least five people as buildings w

Foreign Affairs March 16, 2022

Global airlines on Monday projected a sharp reduction in industry losses next year as a multispeed recovery from the coronavirus crisis gets under way, but revised up the financial toll inflicted by the pandemic in 2020 and 2021. The International Air Transport Association, the industry's main trade body, predicted that net losses at airlines would narrow to $11.6 billion in 2022 from $51.8 billion this year.The losses for 2021 were revised up from $47.7 billion estimated in April. IATA also r

Mobility Oct. 4, 2021

Britain and South Korea have agreed to swap over 1 million COVID-19 vaccine doses with each other, with the UK sending a first batch of Pfizer shots in the coming weeks and Korea returning the same volume by the end of the year. Britain said it would send Pfizer doses which it does not immediately need, so they can be used more quickly in South Korea. "By working closely with our friends in South Korea, this vaccine swap will maximize their rollout speed without having an impact on the UK

Foreign Affairs Sept. 22, 2021

South Korean lawmakers will vote as early as Monday on whether to require hospitals to place surveillance cameras in operating rooms after a series of medical accidents involving unqualified staff who stood in for surgeons. If the bill is approved by parliament, South Korea will be the first developed country to require closed-circuit cameras to record surgical procedures. The push for having cameras in operating theatres intensified after a case in 2016 in which surgeons at private clinics we

Social Affairs Aug. 30, 2021

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) -- Malaysia's new Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said on Sunday he will inviteopposition leaders to join the government's special committeesto address the COVID-19 crisis. Ismail Sabri took charge on Saturday with a slim parliamentary majority as the SoutheastAsian nation battles its worst COVID-19 surge and public angergrows over mismanagement of the pandemic. The 61-year-old was deputy premier in the administration ofMuhyiddin Yassin, which collapsed on Monday due

World News Aug. 22, 2021

SEOUL (Reuters) -- South Korea is in talks with mRNA vaccine makers including Pfizer and Moderna to produce COVID-19 shots in the country and is ready to offer the capacity to make up to 1 billion doses immediately, a senior government official said. The plan, if agreed, would help ease tight global supply of COVID-19 vaccines, particularly in Asia which lags North America and Europe in vaccine rollouts, and put South Korea a step closer to its ambition to become a major vaccine manufacturing c

Social Affairs July 5, 2021

TOKYO (Reuters) -- Up to 10,000 domestic spectators will be allowed in Tokyo 2020 venues, Olympics organisers said on Monday, a decision that cuts against the recommendation of medical experts who said holding the event without fans was the least risky option. The announcement ends months of speculation and highlights Japan's determination to push on with the Games and salvage the multi-billion-dollar extravaganza amid public opposition and deep concern about a resurgence in infections. The de

Olympic Games June 21, 2021

SHANGHAI (Reuters) -- A few malls and residentialcomplexes in Shanghai have started asking visitors to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination, with one shopping centre's temporarydecision to bar entry sparking a backlash on social media. A video showing a local resident arguing with securityguards about the legitimacy of barring unvaccinated people atthe entrance of the Pacific Life Plaza in Shanghai has beenshared tens of hundreds of times on China's Twitter-like Weibo. Several vendors told Reute

World News June 7, 2021

BEIJING (Reuters) -- Remnants of China's biggestrocket landed in the Indian Ocean on Sunday, with the bulk ofits components destroyed upon re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, according to Chinese state media, ending days ofspeculation over where the debris would hit. The coordinates given by state media, citing the ChinaManned Space Engineering Office, put the point of impact in the ocean, west of the Maldives archipelago. Debris from the Long March 5B has had some people lookingwarily skywa

World News May 9, 2021

Facebook said onWednesday it was launching a "lite" version of Instagram in 170 countries that will enable people with poor internet to access the photo and video sharing social networking service. Instagram Lite will be available for Android-based phonesand require less bandwidth than the traditional version.The app itself requires just 2 megabytes (MB) -- versus 30 MB for Instagram -- and runs even on slower 2G networks, allowing customers in parts of India, Africa, Asia and Latin

Technology March 10, 2021