Asia Sri Lanka An “Ehi Passiko” peace walk began in Dambulla, bringing together Buddhist monks and participants to promote peace and mindfulness; “Ehi Passiko,” meaning “come and see,” reflects a core Buddhist principle encouraging understanding through experience
Oceania Kiribati Australian Defence Vessel Reliant, an offshore support vessel operating in the Pacific, departed Brisbane for its first deployment of 2025, during which it will also deliver fire trucks to Kiribati
Asia Iraq One of the main ways Baghdad intends to meet its climate commitments, become self-sufficient and reduce import costs is to reduce, and utilise, gas flaring in the country, reducing it to 20% by 2025
America Ecuador Diplomatic and consular services for Ecuador in Venezuela will be taken over by Switzerland, as the bilateral relations between the two South American nations have been broken
Asia Kuwait The Cabinet approved a draft decree-law imposing a 15% tax on multinational entities operating in multiple jurisdictions, aligning with global tax regulations to curb tax evasion and ensure revenue retention, coming into force on 1 January 2025
America Cuba Former players Lázaro Junco and Lázaro de la Torre lead the teams from Matanzas and Havana, respectively, for the 150th anniversary tribute game of the first official baseball game in Cuba
America Panama US President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to reclaim control of the Panama Canal, criticizing Panama’s toll fees as excessive and warning against alleged Chinese influence, despite China's lack of administrative control over the canal
Asia Lebanon Three students from the American University of Beirut launched a donation campaign, called 'Hope for Our Lebanon', to support displaced Lebanese families by distributing food, sanitary boxes and clothes
Asia East Timor Independent study on the development of the Greater Sunrise gas project, conducted by company Wood earlier this year confirms that developing it in East Timor waters is feasible and would be provide significant economic and social benefits
Europe Liechtenstein Liechtenstein has joined the Artemis Agreement with the signature of Rainer Schnepfleitner, director of the Liechtenstein Communications Office, the government agency responsible for space matters
Europe Andorra The new Strategic Plan for National Museums and Monuments 2024-2030, recently presented, outlines the future of Andorran heritage and reaffirms commitment to the culture of Andorra, adapting to the needs and challenges of the present and future
America Bahamas FxPro Group's digital bank Bankpro has launched a private digital bank for individuals and businesses, regulated by the Central Bank of The Bahamas, which will include investment and trading tools
Europe Bosnia and Herzegovina Due to the heavy snowfall over the past few days, around 200.000 homes were left without electricity, motorways have been closed and rail services disrupted; snowfall also made made difficult the operation of domestic heating and drinking water systems
America Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Richland Park, won the 2024 National Christmas Lighting competition as Best Lit Community, while the perennial winner, Point Village on North Windward, finished second this year