Iran’s president says Tehran wants a deal with U.S. before midterm elections

NEW YORK: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Thursday suggested his government was willing to make a deal with the U.S. to end the war before Americans head to the polls this November. “We don’t want it to get to the midterm elections,” Pezeshkian said Thursday in a brief meeting with NBC News and other news organizations on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly....more

Xi Jinping says US, China have ‘responsibility to ensure AI development under human control’

WASHINGTON: China and the United States have the “responsibility” to ensure that the development of artificial intelligence remains under human control, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday. Jinping is in Washington for his second state visit to the United States. “We have both the capability and responsibility to develop and manage AI for good and ensure that the development of AI is always under human control,” the Chinese President said at the White House....more

Guterres Backs Permanent African Seat on UN Security Council

By Deepak Arora

UNITED NATIONS: UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Tuesday made a direct call for permanent African representation on the Security Council, saying the body must be reformed to reflect the realities of the 21st century. Addressing the opening of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, Guterres said the Security Council was created in the aftermath of World War II, but the world has changed fundamentally since then....more

Trump rechristens artificial intelligence as ‘super intelligence’, dismisses AI risk concerns

UNITED NATIONS: United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday rechristened “artificial intelligence” to “super intelligence” during his address at the United Nations General Assembly and said that the US government documents would use the new term going forward. "From this point forward, all of United States documents, and hopefully the world's will be changed to use the much more accurate term 'super' as opposed to artificial. So it's super intelligence," Trump said said while strongly advocating for AI....more

Global Mayors Convened by Mamdani Set Out Shared Migration Priorities for G20 Leaders

NEW YORK: As world leaders gather in New York for the United Nations General Assembly, mayors and city leaders from more than 35 cities today advanced a shared vision on migration, one of the defining political issues of our time. Convened by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani as part of the 2026 Urban 20 (U20) Mayors Summit, city leaders from across the world made the case that migration can strengthen economies, respond to demographic change, and build more resilient communities—and that cities have a critical role to play in making it work....more

Guterres Warns World’s Power Faultlines Are Turning Into ‘Canyons’

By Deepak Arora

UNITED NATIONS: The world is drifting toward deeper division, widening inequality and conflicts that are increasingly escaping the restraints of international law, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned Tuesday, opening the General Assembly’s 81st session with an urgent call to reshape global institutions for a rapidly changing world. “The faultlines in our world are widening. Cracks have become canyons,” Guterres told world leaders gathered in the General Assembly Hall....more

‘Make a deal or annihilate Iran?’ Trump lays out his options in UNGA speech

UNITED NATIONS: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that he is deciding between making a deal with Iran or "annihilating" the Islamic Republic. But, Trump also suggested that the US will make a deal right after the November midterm elections. Trump has often taken pride in having allegedly mediated several wars. In his address at the UN General Assembly in New York, he referred to two key conflicts in the world at the moment -- one, his own country's war with Iran, and the second, the Russia-Ukraine conflict....more

India, other G4 nations express 'strong concern' at lack of progress on UNSC reform

UNITED NATIONS: The G4 nations of Brazil, Germany, India and Japan have expressed strong concern over the lack of progress on UN Security Council reform during the previous Inter-Governmental Negotiations session. Foreign Minister of Brazil Mauro Vieira, Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany Johann David Wadephul, Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Motegi Toshimitsu met Tuesday on the margins of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly....more

Jaishankar meets Rubio, Raises concern over Russia sanctions act

NEW YORK: External affairs minister S. Jaishankar met US secretary of state Marco Rubio on Wednesday and reiterated India’s “interests and concerns” over Washington’s new law paving the way for tariffs of up to 100% against Russia’s biggest oil and gas customers – a list that includes India....more

Benjamin Netanyahu rejects Gaza genocide allegations in UNGA speech

UNITED NATIONS: Allegations of Israeli genocide in Gaza are not only false but “the biggest lie of the century,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told world leaders Thursday in a defiant speech that asserted his nation’s right to wage war against Iran — and was not heard by scores of delegates who trooped out before he started speaking....more

US Ambassador Sergio Gor calls Jammu and Kashmir important part of India after meeting Omar Abdullah

SRINAGAR: US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor has described Jammu and Kashmir as an “important part of India” after meeting Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in Srinagar. Ambassador Gor, who arrived in Srinagar as part of his first visit to Jammu and Kashmir since assuming office, held discussions with Omar Abdullah on India-US relations and areas where Washington could engage with the Union Territory....more

CEC Gyanesh Kumar must resign, turn approver: Rahul Gandhi

NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday called for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, while reiterating his earlier claims of “vote-chori”. The leader of opposition in Lok Sabha cited states like Haryana, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, questioning how the anti-incumbency in these states had “disappeared.”...more

Zelensky says Russia tricking Indians, 46 other nationals into joining war

UNITED NATIONS: Russia is luring Indians into its war against Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky has said. The Ukrainian President alleged that Moscow was recruiting nationals from 47 countries through “deception and tricks”. At the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Wednesday, Zelensky asked the other countries to prevent their citizens from being drawn into the Russia-Ukraine war....more

‘Resign within 48 hours or Jantar Mantar 2.0’: CJP's ultimatum to CEC Gyanesh Kumar

NEW DELHI: The Cockroach Janta Party on Thursday demanded chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation, threatening a nationwide agitation similar to the Jantar Mantar protests between June and July if he does not step down within 48 hours. The organisation accused the CEC of “undermining” voter rights and launched the “Election Commission Thik Karo” campaign....more