WORLD

Russia on Friday said President Vladimir Putin had sent "additional" signals to counterpart Donald Trump about a Washington-proposed ceasefire in Ukraine, adding it was "cautiously optimistic" about the prospect of a deal.

Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte's deadly war on drugs has always faced strong opposition on the home front.

Most of the layoffs will impact international employees, with 1,975 positions eliminated across 44 countries, along with 247 jobs in the U.S.

The World Food Programme will be forced to cut off one million people in war-torn Myanmar from its vital food aid because of "critical funding shortfalls", it said on Friday.

Ireland have a glimmer of hope that they can retain their Six Nations crown on Saturday when they take on Italy in Rome, looking to bounce back from a painful defeat to title favourites France.

More than a century ago, Pablo Picasso smashed the Sacre-Coeur Basilica in Paris into a web of tangled lines on his canvas, deconstructing reality with the brushstrokes of a master cubist.

Panama's government said Thursday it would remain "firm" in defending its sovereignty and the Panama Canal, after a report suggesting that US President Donald Trump is considering options aimed at "reclaiming" the strategic waterway.

Nepali police officer Jiwan Subba still feels pangs of regret decades after he bludgeoned a strange creature he found wandering in his barn, not realising it was an endangered red panda.

Minutes after former Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte was bundled onto a plane bound for The Hague to face a charge of crimes against humanity, President Ferdinand Marcos said of the arrest: "Politics doesn't enter into it."

Manchester City face a crucial clash with Brighton as the pressure mounts in the race to finish in the Premier League's top four.

Brazil's Supreme Court on Thursday said it would consider on March 25 whether to try far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro on charges of masterminding an attempted coup.

A US judge on Thursday ordered six federal agencies to rehire thousands of probationary workers fired as part of Donald Trump's push to slash the size and scope of government.

A "Blood Moon" will bathe a large swathe of the world in red light overnight Thursday during a rare total lunar eclipse.

The European Union is ready to negotiate with the United States over escalating tariffs between the two economic superpowers, European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said Thursday.

Azerbaijan and Armenia said Thursday that they had wrapped up peace talks aimed at resolving the Caucasus neighbours' decades-long conflict, both sides having agreed the text of a possible treaty.

European and US policy makers are eyeing deeper ties around natural gas even as trade conflict boils and President Donald Trump challenges the long-running transatlantic alliance.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte visits the White House Thursday seeking to convince President Donald Trump to maintain US commitment to the transatlantic alliance and to Ukraine.

A trial as to whether Australian mining giant BHP is liable for one of Brazil's worst environmental disasters concludes in London on Thursday, with hundreds of thousands of victims demanding billions in compensation.

A new graft scandal rocked the European Parliament on Thursday after police carried out several raids in Belgium and Portugal, detaining multiple suspects as part of a probe into corruption masqueraded as lobbying.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to impose 200-percent tariffs on wine, champagne and other alcoholic products from France and other European Union countries in retaliation against the bloc's planned levies on US-produced whiskey.

US negotiators travelled to Russia on Thursday to present their plan for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine, as Washington pushed Moscow for an "unconditional" pause to the three-year conflict.

Taiwan plans to reinstate military judges to hear Chinese espionage cases and other offences involving Taiwanese service members, President Lai Ching-te said Thursday.

Food delivery app Deliveroo announced Thursday its first annual profit as orders and revenue rose, while the 12-year old company sees further growth despite exiting Hong Kong.

Pope Francis marks 12 years as head of the Catholic Church on Thursday, seemingly out of danger after a month in hospital but with his health casting a shadow over his future.

The bodies of at least 25 people, including 21 hostages, killed in a train siege by separatist gunmen in Pakistan were retrieved from the site on Thursday ahead of the first funerals, officials said.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to meet his Canadian counterpart at a G7 gathering Thursday, but discussion of American annexation threats has been ruled off-limits at talks expected to be dominated by efforts to agree a ceasefire in Ukraine.

A UK court on Thursday will hear the appeals of the father and stepmother of a murdered British-Pakistani girl, who were jailed for life after killing the child following years of torture.

Asian investors struggled Thursday to build on much-needed gains on Wall Street as a below-forecast read on US inflation was offset by ongoing concerns about President Donald Trump's trade war.

Western Europe has a new oldest face: the facial bones of an adult nicknamed "Pink" discovered in Spain are from a potential new member of the human family who lived more than 1.1 million years ago, scientists said Wednesday.